Community Coaching

Model Cities offers one effective detention alternatives for juveniles who should not be held in secure detention:

The Community Coaching program – a short-term intervention that serves as an alternative to secure detention for youth ages 11 – 19 years old and who are on probation in Ramsey and Dakota counties. The main goal of the Community Coaching program is to reduce the rate of recidivism among juvenile offenders by providing one-to-one connections with caring adults, opportunities for positive social development and linkages to pro-social community-based activities. Trained individual workers, referred to as “Community Coaches” monitor, support and link pre- and post- dispositional youth to community-based services and pro-social activities that help build positive relationships and connections in order to help reduce their risk of reoffending.

The Community Coaching program is part of a larger national initiative called the Juvenile Detentions Alternative Initiative. One focus of the initiative is to improve public safety and long-term outcomes for juvenile offenders by:

1. Reducing the number of juveniles in secure detention,
2. Eliminating the disproportionate representation of juveniles of color in secure detention,
3. Achieving systemic reform of juvenile detention practices and,
4. Developing appropriate and effective detention alternatives for juveniles who should not be held in secure detention.

Some of the youth served through Community Coaching are on high risk probation and are living in their communities and/or transitioning back into their communities from out of home placements. Referrals for the Community Coaching program are made by probation officers within Ramsey and Dakota counties’ Community Corrections departments.

Community Coaching services include the following:

• Mentoring and Support – Community Coaches work with youth up to 90 days on building connections to community-based services and activities that helps them complete goals set by the courts and/or probation in order to avoid violations.
• Skills Building and Personal Development – Supporting youth with building leadership skills and increasing self-esteem. This might include one-on-one coaching that is focused on professional etiquette and personal image, as well as, increasing socialization skills through engagement in  community events, job fairs and other pro-social activities.
• Case Management – A case manager assists youth in accessing other supports that may be needed to help obtain or sustain employment, such as referrals for mental health services, employment readiness and job searching, housing, and linkages to other community-based services.