"It Takes A Whole Village To Raise A Child."
The District Heights Family & Youth Services Center prides itself in creating programs that are beneficial to all participants. Programs are offered in a nondiscriminatory manner, without regard to race, religion, gender, disability, or sexual orientation. We are constantly looking to create and implement new programs that proactively help our community prosper. The programs currently in place are include the Strengthening Families Program, the Visionary Youth Program, and the Domestic Violence Initiative.
Strengthening Families Program
The Strengthening Families Program (SFP) is a 14-session family skills training program designed to increase resilience and reduce risk factors for substance abuse, depression, violence and aggression, delinquency, and school failure in high-risk, 6-12 year old children and their parents. This behavioral and cognitive skills training program was developed by
Positive results from over 15 independent research replications demonstrate that the program is robust and effective in increasing assets and protective factors by improving family relationships, parenting skills, and improving youth's social and life skills. SFP has been modified for African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic and American Indian families, rural families, and families with early teens. Although originally developed for children of substance abusers, SFP is effective and widely used with non-substance abusing parents in many settings: schools, churches, mental health centers, housing projects, homeless shelters, recreation centers, family centers, and drug courts.
The SFP curriculum includes three courses (Parent Skills Training, Children's Skills Training and Family Life Skills Training) taught in fourteen two-hour periods. In the first hour, parents and children participate in separate classes, each class led by two co-leaders. Parents learn to increase desired behaviors in children by using attention and rewards, clear communication, effective discipline, substance use education, problem solving, and limit setting. Children learn effective communication, understanding feelings, coping with anger and criticism, stress management, social skills, problem solving, resisting peer pressure, consequences of substance use, and compliance with parental rules. During the second hour families practice structured family activities, therapeutic child play, family meetings, communication skills, effective discipline, reinforcing positive behaviors in each other, and jointly planning family activities.
Visionary Youth Program
Through support from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) provided by
1) Establishing tutoring and academic enrichment programs for teens who may be struggling academically.
2) Implementing employment readiness projects so our youth can learn about potential career opportunities.
3) To expose our youth to the various college opportunities and options by hosting events such as a college fairs.
Specific facets of the Visionary Youth program include:
Job Bank
The Job Bank program is a job matching service that provides various employment opportunites for teens. Those who are interested simply complete an application that is in turn filed with the Job Bank. Residents then call when they need work done, whether it be ongoing work or a one-time task. Fees for services are negotiated between the resident and the teen.
Scholarship/Financial Aid Bank
Agency staff maintains and updates a comprehensive catalog of financial aid and scholarship opportunities for college-bound youth.
College and Career Expo
Representatives from four-year colleges, community colleges, technical/trade schools provide curriculum options and admission requirements to teens in attendance. Within the expo, private and public companies discuss opportunities about summer help, internships as well as disclosing information about various job requirements and descriptions.
Tutoring
Operating as a weekly tutoring program, high students with a GPA of 3.2 or above serve as tutors to elementary and middle school children in areas such as math and reading.
Career/College Development Institute (CDI)
The CDI is an intensive academy that expands teens’ interest and knowledge about career and college options. Teens who volunteer to join CDI, will be afforded the opportunity to attend seminars on important topics such as money management, dressing for success, interview and resume-writing skills, and goal setting. Job placement assistance and college application fee waivers are are also provided upon completion of the program.
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)
This opportunity allows our youth to tour HBCU's wthin the Baltimore- Washington Area for little to no-cost.
Domestic Violence Initiative
We have teamed up with the National Hook Up of Black Women Inc., Southern Maryland Chapter to help bring an end to domestic violence within our community.
STAND UP. We will encourage people to break the code of silence by giving up their membership in the silent majority and stand up for victims of domestic violence. The following acronym describes the steps that must be taken to bring the issue of domestic violence to the light.
S Support victims of domestic violence through advocacy, ongoing treatment, job protection and secure housing.
T Take responsibility by speaking out about domestic violence.
A Address the obstacles that allow Domestic Violence to continue.
N Never pass up an opportunity to educate people about domestic violence.
D Demand that community leaders take steps to protect and serve victims.
U Unite stakeholders to be proactive in the struggle to end Domestic Violence.
P Protect the rights of those who are violated by urging legislators to strengthen laws and secure funding for prevention and intervention.
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends...”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.