Transcript Diversity of How Youth Relate …

Diversity of How Youth Relate …
Examining Gender-Specific Issues &
Responsive Programming
Presented by:
Lynn Knezevich, Gwen’s Girls, Inc.
Nancy Sabol, Gannondale
Pat Yeager, Vision Quest
Pennsylvania Council of Children, Youth, and Family Services
2005 Membership Meeting
Outline

Overview of Gender-Specific/Responsive
Services & Programs

Gender-Specific Clinical/Treatment Issues
that often manifest and must be
practically addressed

Focus on Trauma in Gender-Specific
Treatment: Understanding & Treating
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Overview of
Gender-Specific/
Responsive Services &
Programs
Lynn Knezevich, Gwen’s Girls, Inc.
Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
1970’s:
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1974: Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention Act (JJDPA) passed
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No gender-specific requirements mentioned
Focus on child rights & treatment of juveniles separate
from adults
Had provisions to address specific needs of status
offenders
1976: Jean Baker Miller writes New Psychology
of Women.
Feminist Theory & Relational Theory:
increased understanding of how women & girls develop
& relate; equal rights of women, etc.
Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
1980’s:
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Increase in research & in development
of female programming & services
1981: Stone Center at Wellesley College
Founded (by Miller et al.)
• 1982: Carol Gilligan writes In a Different
Voice: Psychological Theory & Women’s
Development
• 1985: PACE Center for Girls established
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Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
1990’s:
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1992: Reauthorization of JJDP Act
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Requires states to identify gaps in ability to provide svs
to female offenders; analysis of svs required, as well as
plan for providing svs
Represented first time for many states that an
organized effort to scrutinize state system and how
relates to adolescent females
Separate funding for 10 activities: Most states focus
on est. policies to prohibit gender bias in placement &
treatment and est. programs to ensure female youth
have access to full range of svs
Led to new & improved efforts to better
serve girls
Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
1990’s: some highlights
1992: Judith Herman writes Trauma &
Recovery
• 1998: OJJDP publishes Guidelines for
Promising Female Programming
• Great deal of research re: G-S Services
and Programming.
• Pennsylvania: Established PTSD training
& certified sites thru PCCD
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Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
2000 to Present: National
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2002: Reauthorization of JJDP Act
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requiring states to create a plan for providing G-S
services
New funding stream thru Part C Juvenile
Delinquency Prevention Block Grant
OJJDP/JABG creates GenderResponsive Programming Curriculum
Brief History of GenderResponsive Programs
2000 to Present: Pennsylvania
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2005: DPW’s Office of Children, Youth
and Families (OCYF) receives grant
from PCCD to focus on development
of a gender-responsive continuum of
care for girls involved in Pennsylvania's
juvenile justice system.
Contact: Jenna Mehnert, Director of Policy & Planning at DPW for
more info at [email protected]
Why Girls Need GenderCompetent Programs
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Girls develop in unique & powerful ways
that require specialized focus
Programs designed for boys do not
address unique & complex needs of girls
Programs for are more successful when:
For Boys
•Focus
on rules
•Offer ways to advance
thru structured system
For Girls
•Focus
on relationships
with other people
•Offer ways to master
their lives while keeping
these relationships intact
Definitions
Gender-Specific Services
comprehensively addresses the needs of a gender group
(female or male), fostering positive gender identity
development
Gender-Responsive Programming
(GRP)
for girls intentionally allows gender to affect & guide services,
creating an environment through site selection, staff
selection, program development, content & material that
reflects and understanding of the realities’ of girls lives, and is
addresses and responds to the strengths, issues, and needs
of the girls and young women being served
Definitions
OJJDP has defined GRP as those that are:
• designed to meet UNIQUE NEEDS of young at-risk
and delinquent girls
• that value the FEMALE PERSPECTIVE
• that celebrate & honor the FEMALE EXPERIENCE
• that respect & take into account FEMALE
DEVELOPMENT
•that EMPOWER young women to reach their full
potential
Recommendations for
Overall Design
Organization & Management:
“good gender-specific services begin with good services”
•Program Policies
•Assessment Tools, Screening Instruments & Intake Process
•Quality Assurance (Collecting Data on girls; Outcome
Measurements; continuous feedback & input)
•Program Design & Service Delivery
•Aftercare/Followup
Staff Qualifications & Staffing Patterns:
•Hiring
& Staff Diversity: Staffing should reflect diversity of
population served
•Training: in GRP, adolescent female development, risks &
resiliency, knowledge of culture, and assessment
•Staff Retention
Key Components of GRP
SAFE
ENVIRONMENT
STRENGTHBASED
EDUCATION &
SKILLS
HOLISTIC
RELATIONSHIPPROGRAMMING
BASED
HEALTH-BASED
OTHER
CRITICAL
AREAS
Key Components of GRP
SAFE ENVIRONMENT
• Physical Safety
HOLISTIC
PROGRAMMING
Emotional Safety
• Surroundings that Value
Females
• Single-gender programming –
in small groups, free from
attention of adolescent males
Works with girl in her
environments:
• Individually
• Families (involvement in
treatment & programming)
• Schools
•Community (supports & reentry)
•Systems involved (courts, foster
care, etc.)
STRENGTH-BASED
EDUCATION & SKILLS
HEALTH-BASED
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Teach new skills based on
strengths
• Provide equitable academic &
vocational experiences
• Give girls control & voice in
program
•Support leadership skill
development
•Media Literacy
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Addressing unique needs of
females re:
• Physical Health, including
recreational activities
•Sexual Health, including
pregnancy & parenting
• Emotional & Mental Health
• Alcohol, Tobacco & Drug-Free
Health (addressing history of
Substance Abuse)
•Spiritual Health
RELATIONSHIP-BASED
Understand girls’ need for
relationships & connection
• takes time for est.
relationships
• Provides positive female role
models & mentors
• focus on healthy relationships
•Focus on establishing supports
& networks in communities,
peer groups & with family
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OTHER CRITICAL
AREAS:
Address trauma &
victimization in girls’ lives
• be Culturally Competent and
promote cultural connections
• Must address economic
survival of girls as critical need,
e.g. housing and employment
needs
•Must be comprehensive,
integrated & sustained over
time
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Gender-Specific
Clinical/Treatment Issues
Nancy Sabol, Gannondale
Focus on Trauma in
Gender-Specific Treatment:
Understanding & Treating
Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder (PTSD)
Pat Yeager, Vision Quest
Resources
will insert links to resources here …