Key Strategies in our Out-of-Home Care Programs
Building on Strengths
Good Shepherd’s diverse out-of-home programs are united by a profound belief in the strength of every individual. Positive outcomes are achieved through an approach that helps young people and their families identify and build on their inherent abilities. Through our utilization of the youth development model, we provide young people with safe and structured environments that promote caring and trusting relationships, set high expectations and provide opportunities for the young people to develop the life skills they’ll need for the future. In our work with families, we focus on helping them develop their capacity to solve the challenges facing them and achieve long-lasting self-reliance.
Promoting Self-Sufficiency
We know that young people have what it takes to succeed. And preparing the young people in our residential and foster boarding home programs for self-sufficiency and productive and healthy lives is our ultimate mission. We work on several fronts to promote self-sufficiency. First, we seek to ensure academic success and the development of post-secondary education goals appropriate to each young person. We also link young people to mentors who help open doors to new experiences and inspire them to develop new aspirations, skills and interests in the area of jobs and careers. Through work readiness and life skills activities, we offer a continuum of learning experiences that prepare our young people for the world of work and independent living. Our aftercare program provides a range of supportive services and helps to ensure a smooth transition after placement.
Forging Permanent Connections
Relationships are key to nurturing youth and helping them succeed. As such, no young person leaves our care without a meaningful, permanent connection with a caring adult in the community. In many cases, it is a member of the young person’s own family who can best fulfill this role, even though a return home may not be possible. Our mentoring program also provides our young people with a positive support system through structured one-to-one relationships with caring, competent adults. Often, the mentors sustain the relationship after youth are discharged and represent a consistent presence in their lives as they make the transition to living independently and beyond
Addressing Trauma: Sanctuary Model®
Good Shepherd has made a commitment to implement the Sanctuary Model within our residential programs, and we have begun to undertake this process. The Sanctuary Model is a comprehensive, ecological approach to addressing the needs of children and youth who have experienced severe forms of trauma. It was originally developed for use in adult inpatient psychiatric settings, and has since been successfully adapted for use in other environments, including group homes for adolescents. The intervention strives to change the culture of care, challenging organizations to reexamine their basis assumptions about the extent to which their care environments promote safety and non-violence across physical, psychological, social and moral domains. The goal is to develop a trauma-sensitive culture so that healing from psychological and social traumatic experience can be addressed. We believe that the Sanctuary Model will help us strengthen our residential programs and empower our young people to influence their own lives and communities in positive ways. Click here to find out more about the model.
