How Can I Help?
				Connecting Kids to Counselling Our Connecting Kids to Counselling initiatives assist high-risk children and youth establish the necessary building blocks to improve their life opportunities. Counselling programs help children and youth develop healthier attitudes and behaviours to reduce their risk of victimization and/or their involvement in criminal behaviour. At times the DFCC's companion initiative - 'Connecting Kids to Their Community' supports opportunities for adolescents to participate in activities which encourage the development of community ties that strengthen the rehabilitative process. Connecting Kids to Counselling provides a creative and cooperative way for community partners to work with the DFCC to help address targeted issues and barriers which undermine rehabilitative success. Opportunities to donate include: After-School Group Programs Therapeutic Art Clinical Assessment Tools After-School Group Programs After-School Group Programs respond to identified community needs, which match the DFCC's mandate and field of expertise. Programs are geared towards medium and high-risk children and youth. Referrals come from various sources including the Durham Catholic District School Board, Durham District School Board, Police Services and Durham Probation Service. Participating children and youth range in age from 9 to 17 years old. Program themes may include such topics as 'Adolescents Who Have Witnessed or Experienced Violence', and 'Youth Who Have Experienced Acts of Bullying'. Each program has an intake and pre-group screening process, mid and final progress evaluations for each participant and a final evaluation program report. Programs encourage topic understanding, self awareness and skill development. Group leaders are professionals who have expertise in serving high-risk children, youth and families. How to Help: $7,000 will sponsor a group program. Average length: 8 weeks, serving 8 adolescents, supported by 2 facilitators. Therapeutic Art This weekly program is progressive, advancing in technical aspects and therapeutic challenges. The program's primary goal is to help establish trust and rapport between DFCC youth clients and support staff in order to advance a therapeutic process. Emotional risk taking, patience in meeting creative challenges and frustrations ideally result in enhanced self esteem and control, with improved ability for personal reflection and peer/social critical assessment. The process of using creative art as a therapeutic medium ideally results in attitudinal changes regarding a youth's approach to themselves, their family, society, life and its complexities. How to Help: $1,500 will sponsor our Therapeutic Art Program for one year. Clinical Assessment Tools Upon referrals to the Community Support Team (CST) and the Collaborative Day Treatment Program (for related details, please see main menu 'Programs-Counselling'), a series of assessment tools are utilized. Based on assessment data, individual education and treatment plans are developed, establishing the goals and objectives as well as outlining the specific daily interventions to be utilized primarily within a cognitive behavioural approach. How to Help: A $5,000 donation will cover the total cost of these tools for one year. A $50 donation will cover the cost of one assessment tool.