Is your child in trouble? Or just needing to belong? 3 new Boise-area places offer help
Two new centers have just opened in the Treasure Valley to help children and teenagers with serious emotional or behavioral problems, including one for Ada County youths who have had brushes with law enforcement.
And a third center, offering Kuna-area children and teens “a fun, safe space and a fostering environment where they can be who they are,” is on the way.
1. Help to stay away from juvie justice and child welfare
A youth and family services center opened in Boise this month, aiming to help youths avoid incarceration.
The Bridge Youth and Family Resource Center provides “a single point of contact to deflect youth from the juvenile justice and child welfare systems,” according to a news release from Ada County. The center is designed to screen children, refer them to community services, and provide case management and support.
“In the past, law enforcement and juvenile justice professionals tried to get kids into the system to get them help, but the formal juvenile justice system often results in poor outcomes for youth,” Ada County Juvenile Services Director Alison Tate said in the release. “Thanks to Governor Brad Little and the Board of Ada County Commissioners, The Bridge can provide services to youth and families and prevent them from entering the system in the first place.”
Funding came from the Idaho Legislature, which allocated $6.5 million for “safe teen assessment centers” around the state.
Members of the center’s Board of Governance include Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea and officials from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and the Boise School District.
“Gone are the days of ‘scared straight,’ when children who were having difficulties navigating adolescence, and who may have had challenging home lives or other issues, were introduced to prison life,” a post on the county’s website said. “It was a way of scaring them into avoiding a life of incarceration. Years of research now shows us that redirecting children to supportive services is the better way.”
The county does not charge for The Bridge’s services. “If we refer you to community resources such as counseling that have a cost, we will take your insurance status into consideration when identifying potential service providers,” the website says.
The Bridge’s new site is at 621 N. Liberty St. The Bridge started serving youths and families in March at temporary offices at 400 N. Benjamin Lane, where the county houses its juvenile probation services and clinical programs.
To learn more, call 208-477-4820 or email TheBridge@aacounty.id.gov.
2. Help for disorders and emotional or relationship woes
The Idaho Youth Ranch has opened its Residential Center for Healing and Resilience on the Youth Ranch’s rustic, 258-acre Hands of Promise campus near Caldwell.
Young patients can get help with depression and mood disorders, suicidal ideation and self harm, post-traumatic stress disorder, attachment disorders, trauma, family conflict, unhealthy relationships, ADHD or other attention difficulties, bipolar disorder, substance-abuse disorders, anxiety disorders and negative childhood experiences, the Youth Ranch says.
The center, at 28371 El Paso Road, offers 64 bedrooms for Idaho children ages 11-17 who require an extra level of support beyond routine therapy, the nonprofit said in a news release. The center offers 24-hour nursing and psychiatric care and year-round schooling.
The center also includes a welcome center, a dining and recreation hall, and a therapy and wellness building.
“This facility has been designed from the ground up to meet the unique needs of the kids,” said Spencer Merrick, the medical director, in the release. “Every aspect of care from the therapies to the food has been considered to give youth the best chance for long-term success.”
The Youth Ranch tells parents that its center can help if a child has:
Not made significant progress in outpatient therapy or other treatment,
Recently been admitted for psychiatric treatment and requires more care than can be provided at home.
A mental health condition that may endanger the safety of the child or others.
The center opened Aug. 15. The Youth Ranch said it raised $35 million for it, mostly from private donors, local businesses, and foundations, and from an Idaho Department of Health and Welfare grant.
The center will employ over 110 people, the Youth Ranch said.
For more information, call 208-454-8847 or visit www.youthranch.org/contact
3. A place for Kuna kids to belong
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County is raising money for a new clubhouse in Kuna.
When completed, the 27,000-square-foot clubhouse on 3.25 acres of donated land will serve more than 1,200 children and teens up to age 18 every year, the Boys & Girls Clubs say.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County offer before- and after-school programs, including sports, arts, academics, mentorship and more. Plans call for the clubhouse to include a gym, a science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics room, a teen center, a tech lab, an art room, and a cafeteria providing free meals.
The nonprofit operates multiple other clubs in Boise, Garden City and Meridian, too. Before- and after-school programs generally cost $35 per week, with some clubs offering an after-school only option for $25 per week, with scholarships available for low-income families. To learn more, call 208-376-4960 or visit www.adaclubs.org.
The $11 million Kuna project is being funded through a capital campaign that kicked off with a lead gift of $4 million from CS Beef Packers, which was partly motivated by the need for more day care services for its workers. The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust just donated $375,000 to the campaign.
“With a growing youth population in Kuna, expanding the Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County’s capacity is critical to meeting the needs of this community,” Jeremy White, program director at the Murdock Trust, said in a news release.
The Boys & Girls Clubs has been running its programs in Kuna from a classroom and an old gym that does not have air conditioning. It’s able to serve only about 100 children a day, and it has no programs for teens. In the past 15 years, the population in Kuna has grown to more than 26,000 people, about 11,000 who are school-age.
Additionally, 95% of the city’s residents work outside of the city, which means many parents are away from home during the day, according to the club.
“We are the only after-school program in the city, and we’ve been capped since just about the day we opened in 2008,” Colleen Braga, executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County, said in the release.
The Boys & Girls Club is also partnering with Giraffe Laugh for on-site day care for children up to age 5.
The clubhouse is expected to be completed by the end of spring 2024. It is located just south of West Tern Drive across the Teed Lateral from Butler Park, between School Avenue and Linder Road. The site is about halfway between Kuna Middle School to the west and Kuna High School to the east.
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