The Center for Children's Services is able to offer this community a comprehensive set of family support services and resources. The Center is unique among child and family centers, not only in our community, but in the entire state of
Illinois, because it is the only center which bundles such a comprehensive array of family supports in one place.
Services which are available to our families include individual, group, and family counseling, crisis intervention, parent education programs, childcare, youth mentoring, in-home support services, family conflict intervention, respite, job skills training, GED classes, therapeutic after school programming, services for pregnant and parenting teens, child psychiatry services, temporary youth placements, interventions for delinquent and antisocial youth, school-based programs, etc. Regardless of a family's needs, help can be obtained in one or more of the Center's many services and programs.
The Council on Accreditation for Children and Families (COA) has recently awarded The Center for Children's Services a quality score of 99.3%, one of the highest scores ever awarded by COA! The Center was evaluated on 711 specific quality standards and received a grade on each of those standards. The Center met or exceeded the quality standards of COA on 706 of the 711 standard evaluated. Center programs and services were judged to exceed COA standards (received a "perfect" score) on 76% of all standards evaluated. The COA evaluation of The Center is definitive proof of the world-class level of quality that The Center offers this community.
Our response policy is a simple one: WE ALWAYS HELP. There is no such thing as being told "sorry, we don't do that" or "That's not our job or in our contract". No one is turned away. Regardless of situation of funding, we always assess the immediate needs of the moment, and get to happen whatever is necessary to keep people safe and alive. We will always either meet the need directly, make arrangements to ensure that another service provider will meet the need, link you to resources, or help to identify options. You can ALWAYS count on the Center to connect you to the resources that you need, day or night.
The Center for Children's Services stresses family-focused interventions that target changes in the youth's world and his/her important relationships. Treatment ultimately involves working with the home, school, and community to identify and implement recipes for success (conditions which bring out the best in them) and identify the eliminate recipes for failure (conditions which bring out the worst in them). By providing conditions in which the youth thrives, and by eliminating obstacles, triggers and temptations for trouble, we rig the world so that things go well. Out motto is: "Success can always be engineered: Poor card players suddenly get much better when you deal them aces". Our goal is to deal you aces.