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AN OVERVIEW OF PROGRAMS
FOR YOUTH-AT-RISK IN CANADA
By Greg Stevenson
[Greg Stevenson is the Executive
Director of CanAdventure Education Vancouver Island, BC, Canada
and can be contacted at 250-544-4005 or 877-544-2267 info@canadventure.ca
www.canadventure.ca]
Programs for youth-at-risk in Canada are, for the most part,
run by government or not-for-profit organizations. Many Canadians
expect programs and services for youth-at-risk to be free,
or at least subsidized by parties other than the direct user.
This perspective is consistent with the Canadians' strong
support for a social security system that provides essential
services at no cost to those who struggle to find a positive
and productive place in society. Any professional who works
with youth-at-risk knows that the majority of troubled teens
come from socio-economic backgrounds that preclude access
to expensive user-pay therapy programs.
This sounds like an ideal system. However, a system funded
through government and charitable giving dollars is inevitably
limited in scope. Most funded programs focus on high-risk
youth and young offenders. There are many youth-at-risk in
Canada who do not fit eligibility requirements to access the
limited programs funded by the government and not-for-profit
groups. As a result, families of youth-at-risk can be left
with few options for early intervention.
School-based and community services for youth at risk:
Most youth-at-risk cases start in the public school system
or in community-based extra-curricular programs. While there
are differences from province to province, it would be safe
to say that most youth-at-risk are first identified by teachers
or school counselors. They are often then placed in school-based
remedial or alternate learning environments where their special
needs are better addressed through a variety of approaches;
smaller class sizes, increased supervision, regular contact
with a counselor, slower learning pace, and so on. A few public
school programs in Canada turn to experiential outdoor learning
to try and re-engage youth-at-risk in the educational process
while simultaneously promoting self-esteem, improving behavior
patterns, and helping students integrate in positive ways
with their community. Included in these are the BC-based Vancouver
Island Experiential Wilderness (VIEW) Program at Stelly's
School in Victoria and the Take-a-Hike Program at John Oliver
School in Vancouver.
The problem with school-based services for youth-at-risk is
that public education funding has been significantly reduced
in Canada's decade-long battle to wrestle government deficits
under control. As a result, smaller class sizes, increased
supervision, and school counselors are more difficult to come
by. Factor in the cost of running an experiential outdoor
program and this type of service to youth-at-risk is becoming
harder and harder to find.
Community programs for youth at risk:
In some cases, not-for-profits have picked up the slack left
behind by cuts to school programs. There are many highly-effective
programs for youth-at-risk being offered free or at subsidized
prices by renowned organizations like the Boys & Girls
Club, Big Brothers & Big Sisters, the YM-YWCA and many
others. These programs often provide family services and the
early intervention needed to help get youth-at-risk back on
a positive path. Community recreation centers, which are usually
funded through a combination of government and private monies,
also offer programs that can help address the needs of youth-at-risk
early on. Unfortunately, again due to limited resources, community
programs often lack the duration and scope to have desired
and long-term impacts.
When early intervention doesn't work:
Naturally, many youth-at-risk slip through the cracks in a
system that is struggling with resources. They drop out or
are expelled from school. They fail to connect with the programs
that are available in the community. Or they simply fly below
the radar of a society that is running at a faster and faster
pace with less and less attention to the importance of focused
youth development.
Youth-at-risk that do not gain access to an appropriate and
effective program run the risk of traveling further down the
path of deviant behavior. Some may distance themselves so
much from family, school, and the mainstream community that
traditional methods will no longer be effective. More serious
intervention is required.
These youth-at-risk can end up in one of three places; social
services, the healthcare system or the courts. Youth-at-risk
under the age of majority who experience extreme family conflict
(violence, abuse) or leave home and become street-entrenched
can access programs run by their provincial social services
ministry (Ministry of Children and Family Development in BC).
These include anything from foster care to job training and
placement initiatives. Youth-at-risk that exhibit heavy drug-use
or deteriorating mental health issues like depression and
unmanaged behavioral disorders may eventually require hospitalization
and extended treatment, which is in most cases funded by the
health care system. Youth-at-risk whose deviant and anti-social
behavior patterns go unchecked are likely to wind up in court
and possibly jail. These young offenders will in some cases
have access to wilderness rehabilitation programs, such as
Coastline Challenges in BC and Enviros Project Trust in Alberta.
Are there other intervention options for youth at risk?
Other intervention options for youth-at-risk fall mainly in
the private sector. These include private counseling practices,
drug rehabilitation programs, boarding schools, summer camps
and therapeutic wilderness programs.
Private, user-pay programs are essential much-needed additions
to the youth development programming continuum in Canada,
as they help fill the gaps left by the public and not-for-profit
systems. However, options in Canada remain in many cases limited
in relation to the US. Therapeutic wilderness programs for
youth-at-risk, as an example, are fairly unique in Canada.
Principal operators include CanAdventure Education in BC,
Kiatou in Quebec and Project DARE in Ontario. Other outdoor
education programs offer similar operations but with less
of a specific focus on youth-at-risk.
One of the reasons for the relative lack of private programming
north of the border is Canada's higher level of expectation
related to social assistance issues. Canadians are simply
less receptive to user-pay services for youth-at-risk. As
a result, private sector programs must always consider the
social consciousness of Canadians by doing everything they
can to serve the entire socio-economic spectrum. Scholarships
or subsidies should always be in place to maximize access
to families who might not otherwise be able to afford the
entire cost of intervention for their youth-at-risk. This
will not only make this type of programming more accessible
to Canadians, but will also provide a new option to American
families who enjoy an added discount through the favorable
exchange rate between Canadian and American currencies.
All youth-at-risk deserve a chance to get back on track. We
have the ability to help, and we must do everything we can
to make our programs available to all who need them.
Copyright ©
2005, Woodbury Reports, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
(This article may not be reproduced without written approval
of the publisher.)
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