Clinical Services

Well-rounded individuals focus not only on education or physical activity, but also on mental and emotional health. In order to ensure the mental and emotional health of our clients, the youth of Youth Progress Association have access to a number of group therapy options (e.g., cognitive restructuring, anger management, interpersonal relationship skills, drug and alcohol recovery, etc.), crisis intervention counseling, and on-going individual counseling. Many of our youth have experienced traumatic events or situations in their lives. Our counselors help the youth work through their trauma so that they can move past it and lead productive lives.

Adolescent Brain Development

Youth Progress Association’s philosophy of providing clinical services is closely tied with the understanding of adolescent brain development. Instead of assuming that all clients are developmentally in the same phase, the clinicians at Youth Progress Association individualize the treatment to the specific client’s needs. The clinical staff’s understanding of adolescent and gender-specific brain functioning helps the staff understand and work within the inconsistencies in adolescent behavior.

Unlike adults, adolescents are still developing in many areas. They are growing physically, cognitively, and emotionally. The offending adolescent needs to be held accountable for his behaviors and to learn to draw the connection between cause and effect. Our philosophy is to confront behaviors not in a punitive manner but to redeem the mistakes. Even healthy adolescents are fine-tuning their sense of understanding about what it means to be responsible and who they are as individuals.

Solution/Evidence Based Practices

Youth Progress Association utilizes a solution-based focus. Instead of traditional relapse-prevention, in which youth focus on the behaviors that got them into trouble, YPA clients explore the steps they need to take in order to be successful.

Youth Progress Association has incorporated evidence-based practices into its treatment structure. The clinical staff at YPA strive to keep current with the latest philosophies of adolescent treatment and have developed a cognitive behavioral milieu combined with a solution-based focus. Clients are involved in Skillstreaming, an evidence-based program that teaches appropriate social skills, and all staff have been trained in Motivational Interviewing.