April 8, 2002 - Shawnee County Resource Center for Children, Youth, and Families proving it's effectiveness

Shawnee County District Judge Dan Mitchell called it a "storefront...a place where parents and children can seek assistance with whatever they need."

Sgt. Tony Kirk, who leads the juvenile division of the Topeka Police Department, said it provides "one-stop shopping" for officers working juvenile cases. And, he added, "It provides a myriad of services to families in crisis."

The Shawnee County Children, Youth, and Family Resource Center is in its second year of operation at 300 SW Oakley on the former Topeka State Hospital grounds. In addition to accolades from law enforcement and court officials, statistics concerning the center's work show it has been making a major difference in keeping children with their families and out of state custody.

Since the Resource Center began operating in July of 2000, the number of children who have come into state custody in Shawnee County has dropped from 412 to 311. In addition, the number of reports coming to the state about troubled children not involving abuse and neglect has dropped 50 percent since the center began.

Dona Booe, the chief of social services for the SRS Topeka office said the drop in reports and in custody cases comes because social workers at the Resource Center screen calls and connect families to needed services without state or court involvement.

Judge Mitchell said the drop in court filing was welcome. "I've got more than enough to do with cases that require court intervention," he said.

Nancy Perry, director of United Way of Greater Topeka and president of the Resource Center's board of directors, said the creation of the resource center, which today has 11 different agencies serving various needs of children and families, took time. But she said city, county, state, and agency officials kept working toward the goal.

"People came together with the same mission," Perry said. "What we wanted was a place
where any child could get help, no matter what the problem. The outcomes are starting to be exciting. I'm very, very proud of the Resource Center; it's been like giving birth and watching it grow."

The agencies represented within the Shawnee County Children Youth and Family Resource Center include: Kansas Children's Service League and SRS, providing child welfare services; Family Service & Guidance Center, serving mental health needs; Shawnee Regional Prevention & Recovery Services, serving alcohol and drug issues; the six county school districts, serving truancy and education issues; CASA of Shawnee County and Community Action, providing child advocacy; Shawnee County Health Agency, serving public health issues; Success by Six, providing early childhood education; Prairie Advocacy Center, providing victim's rights; and DCCCA, providing family preservation.

Having all the resources in one place has provided an advantage to both families and agencies working with families, said Amber Johnson, Kinship Care Specialist with CASA. Her job is to work with families to help a child at risk for out of home placement find care and protection within the child's immediate and extended family.

"It's been fabulous," Johnson said. "You have all the information here. It makes it lots easier for families to get resources when we're all working together."

Kate Davis, director of the Resource Center, said a key to the success has been coordination between services. She said having many services for children in the same building almost forces this coordination to happen.

"We're looked at as one entity," she said. "We have 11 agencies here, and we'd have even more if we had room. But it's more than just one building, it's true integration."

For Booe, with SRS, an important facet of the Resource Center is the fact that all intake for children and youth are combined and screened, and appropriate services provided. Resource Center social workers, who are supervised by SRS social workers, get the calls first and divert calls to where help can be provided unless abuse or neglect is involved.

Resource Center Director Davis said "It's the least intrusive method, and it's a more effective use of resources. If we can deal with a family's needs in-house, there's no need for SRS, the courts, or the DA (district attorney). And kids do better without foster care. They need to be in their own family."

Judge Mitchell, who has worked child in need of care cases in Shawnee County for many years, said people interested in creating the center traveled to Florida to view a similar operation in Tampa. But he said Shawnee County has expanded well beyond what was set up in Tampa.

"There are more community resources available," he said.

Nancy Perry said the work done in Shawnee County after the state's Juvenile Justice
Authority asked court districts to put together a plan for serving children also helped bring players together to coordinate services for children and families.

The Resource Center's funding comes both from the agencies operating within the center, from United Way, and from Community Service funding through SRS. Perry said having SRS funding has been important. She also said because the center can prove cost-effectiveness and coordination, grant funding has been available.

"Rather than 11 different programs moving in 11 different directions, we show we are willing to work together, and funding agencies want collaboration," Perry said

The Family Resource Center can be reached at (785) 357-4763.