Damakant Jayshi
Marathon County will launch a remodeled supportive services pilot program for court-ordered at-risk youth who need additional supervision and guidance beginning in June, officials said this week.
The Youth Opportunity Center is a transition from the “traditional model of shelter care” for at-risk youth in Marathon County to “the re-integration of accountability and prevention services,” officials said. It will be located in the previous shelter care facility on Packer Drive in Wausau.
Services will be provided from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday for moderate- to high-risk youth aged 12-17, offering mentorship, skill development and individualized programming based on YASI, or Youth Assessment and Screening Instrument.
Unveiling the pilot at the Marathon County Health and Human Services Committee on Wednesday, county administration officials emphasized that their proposal is not a new program, nor are they asking for additional tax levy funds. Instead, the program would use funds already allocated to the Department of Social Services.
The DSS is replacing the youth shelter care model – under the Sheriff’s Office – which shut down in December 2022. The teens participating in the pilot have all been ordered by the court to attend such programs.
Previously, DSS engaged two agencies, Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, and Professional Services Group, to deliver “shelter care” and “report center services to youth,” both of which were funded in large part by Marathon County’s tax levy. The PSG program ended in October 2020 and the shelter program closed two years after that.
Before the closure, the Sheriff’s Office-run shelter care “provided accountability for youth through consequential out of home placement,” whereas the report center provided services for youth such as educational groups, community service work, homework assistance, and social skills development.
County officials told Wausau Pilot that among the county-run youth shelters in Wisconsin, Marathon County’s shelter was the only one run by law enforcement instead of a social or human services department. That resulted in higher costs that were not financially sustainable, leading to the closure.
“It also presented staffing challenges due to the unique certifications required for staff working within the facility,” Communications Coordinator Sarah Severson told Wausau Pilot & Review. The Sheriff’s Office, however, will continue to operate the Juvenile Secure Detention facility, she added.
The target population are youth who do not abide by their court-ordered conditions.
County officials explained that “not abiding by court orders” refers to, in this case, children who are not adhering to mandates issued by a court, which include “supervision, counseling, community service, restitution, electronic monitoring, drug and alcohol testing, education or treatment programs, curfews, no contact orders, and placement services.”
The objectives of the pilot are similar to the traditional shelter program, the officials said. The department has completed the interview process and offered the position of the Lead Youth Justice Social Worker for the YOC to an internal staff member. The department will hire two additional limited-term employees.
The projected cost for the pilot program through December 2024 is $260,525 and includes start-up costs, staffing, and supplies. It will be paid through funds transferred from the Sheriff’s Office to the DSS to run an alternative shelter-like program for youth under court orders. The transferred amount is $322,925 an amount which has already been included in board-approved budgets.
In addition to this transferred amount, another source of funding is a Youth Justice Innovation Grant from the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Officials said the county received $35,000 under this grant.
No budget amendment is necessary, the officials said.
“[The program] is not asking for more money,” Marathon County Administrator Lance Leonhard said Wednesday. “There’s no need for the board or this committee to take action.”
In her presentation, Social Services Director Christa Jensen told committee members that the pilot is a more cost-effective and better program. The annual budget for the shelter home operation under the Sheriff’s Office was approximately $500,000. For the PSG-run report center, the budget was approximately $120,000 annually. By contrast, the projected annual cost under YOC model is $312,630 annually, Jensen said.
Jensen said the program would assist families facing challenges in managing the behavioral needs of their youth without having them placed outside of the home or in higher levels of care.
Replying to questions from HHS Committee members, she said that there are 29 children under the department’s Youth Justice program. The 10 teens selected for the pilot will come from among this group.
Communications Coordinator Severson said that alternative measures will be in place for the teens who may not be able to participate in the pilot program due to capacity reasons. They will continue to receive supervision services through Youth Justice.
Preparation work began this month with a target launch date of June 3.
