Pilot Foster Care Program Partners Summit County Children Services & The Village Network
AKRON - The Village Network (TVN) will provide Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care (MTFC) services for selected Summit County adolescents in a two-year pilot project. The program teams Summit County Children Services (SCCS), Summit County Juvenile Court, Summit County Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services (ADMH) and the National Institute of Mental Health with TVN.
The specialized foster care program provides opportunities for troubled youth to successfully live in families rather than in group or institutional settings. It also prepares parents, relatives and others to provide the youth with effective parenting so the positive changes are sustained.
"The similarities between MTFC and The Village Network's proprietary treatment foster care model set the stage for easy implementation," said Dave Earley, assistant director, TVN Treatment Foster Care. "Our foster parents are equal and respected members of our treatment team and we view the foster home as the primary treatment environment."
MTFC is an evidenced-based solution for youth with behavioral problems, their families and their communities according to Earley. Over 20 years of research have gone into the program model. Children are placed in a family setting for six to nine months under close supervision with structured, individualized programs. Ten youth will be considered for the program initially.
Under the MTFC model there is one child per foster home. The TVN program will operate with a supervisor, a therapist for the biological family, a child therapist and a foster parent recruiter/office associate.
TVN is a nationally recognized, award winning, statewide treatment foster care provider. Foster parents are carefully selected and rigorously trained. They receive 70 hours of trainings prior to becoming licensed and continue to receive ongoing training in specialized topics such as mental health, trauma and behavioral childcare.
"Recruiting additional foster parents is one of our first priorities," said Earley. "Involvement is key for those families in the MTFC model. We look for parents who enjoy sharing their hobbies, vocations, sports interests and everyday life experiences."
Paid respite care and professional training, weekly support meetings, 24/7 on-call support and comprehensive mental health wrap-around services are part of the program. Those interested in joining the agency's Summit County foster parent program can call 330.252.8600 or visit http://www.thevillagenetwork.org/ for more information.
SCCS and TVN have partnered for several decades serving hundreds of at-risk boys and girls. TVN-Akron offers co-ed residential, day treatment, respite care and treatment foster care programs. It also provides crisis assessment services and administers an In-Home Family Stability program through SCCS.
The Village Network also operates a MTFC program inside Tuscarawas County at TVN-Uhrichsville. TVN has been focused on shaping productive, responsible youth for over 60 years. It operates residential treatment, day treatment, treatment foster care and alternative school programs across the state including Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Columbus, Delaware, Mt. Vernon/Knox County, Newark, Uhrichsville, Sandusky ad Wooster.