Group Home

Van Vleck House

The Group Home provides court-ordered and private placement for youth 10-18 in need of a structured therapeutic environment in Jackson.

During placement each resident goes through program phases that include orientation, identification, application and transition. This program generally takes about five months. During that period, individual, group and family counseling are provided on a weekly basis.

“A big part of the experience here is learning how to identify emotions, talk about them in a real way instead of masking them.”

– Arty Polo, Group Home Manager

Philosophy

Adolescence is a time when teenagers begin to question and challenge their parents, schools, communities and themselves. This is a natural developmental stage but can be very difficult particularly if a family has struggled with other problems in the past. Families can find themselves stuck in repetitive patterns that remain unresolved which escalate the tensions in family relationships. The Group Home provides a safe and structured environment for youth where they can live temporarily while these problems and issues are addressed. Placement may help to ease the tensions and allow the resident and family to identify the problems, find ways to resolve them, and improve their relationships.

The process begins in the Group Home but the majority of the work happens during home visits, during the transition period and when the youth returns home, to another living situation or independent living. The emphasis in the Group Home is on identifying skills that have worked, learning new skills, and practicing those new skills in the Group Home and with family and friends, at school and in the community. By experiencing competence, improved relationships and successes in school and the community, youth gain control over themselves and their own lives.

Treatment

The Group Home provides a structured living environment for up to 9 residents in a home-like setting in Jackson. The Group Home program is divided into four phases:

Orientation – Residents are oriented to the rules and expectations of the program. During this time the residents are always supervised by staff except when they are in school
Identification – Residents begin to identify areas in which they could improve
Application – Residents have identified areas for change and are practicing new skills and behaviors in the Group Home, school, family and community
Transition – Residents will be integrating new skills into their daily lives

Expectations and privileges expand with each phase as the resident learns new skills and ways of coping. Components of the program include:

Individual and family therapy
Individualized treatment plans that residents develop with their therapist and their parents – treatment plans are reviewed and updated as goals are met.
Planned home visits that build on residents’ program phase and their progress in family therapy
Regularly scheduled supervised activities
Point sheets provide feedback to the resident on a daily basis – points are based on following rules and schedule, participation in program, respect for others and general behavior
Monthly reports to parents, caseworkers and Guardian ad Litems that are compilations of point sheets and daily logs
School monitoring and scheduled study time – residents attend public school
Case Management with all those involved including parents, schools and other agencies
Discharge planning and aftercare

Family Involvement

Family involvement is a key factor in the success of a resident at the Group Home. At intake, family input results in more relevant goals since they know their child better than anyone. As the child struggles with beginning work on goals, family support and encouragement are vital, and in order to return home successfully, the family and resident need to practice new skills together to break old patterns.

Parents participate in family therapy. If a parent is not in Jackson, phone sessions are used. We encourage regular visits and phone calls with families. Home visits are an important part of the treatment process in order to practice new skills at home and evaluate progress.

When parents are involved, residents are motivated and complete the program in a shorter period of time while able to sustain long term improvement.

Admissions

Common issues for our residents include family conflicts, difficulty following rules, poor decision-making and coping skills, poor school performance and truancy, and minor legal offenses. While they may need special education or behavioral assistance, they should be able to attend public school.

A referral may be made by a case worker or parent, or representative of the court. An initial screening will be conducted by the Program Manager, Therapist or Director regarding the reasons for the request and the appropriateness of the child for Group Home level of care. Psychological evaluations, social summaries, and other relevant documents are requested when available, but since some of our referrals are for those awaiting such assessments and evaluations, they are not required for admission.

Residents are usually placed at the Group Home by the Juvenile Court Judge. However, we also serve children placed for child protective custody (victims of abuse) and private placements can also be arranged.

Youths that are not appropriate for admission to the Group Home have:

Recent history of violent episodes
Severe developmental limitations
Less than 10 years of age
Active suicidal tendencies
Severe psychiatric conditions that have not been stabilized by medication
Need for substance detoxification
Major medical problems that have not been stabilized

< Court Diversion Services

Van Vleck House Program Overview >

Group Home

Van Vleck House

– Arty Polo, Group Home Manager

Philosophy

Treatment

Family Involvement

Admissions

VAN VLECK HOUSE

(307) 733-6440 PO Box 2631 Jackson, WY 83001

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