Coordinated Children’s Services is a specialized treatment unit funded by the Ulster County Department of Social Services to provide intensive preventive services to high-risk youth and families.
Our interventions can include:
- augmenting parenting skills
- improving mental health symptoms
- reducing self-destructive, harmful and delinquent behavior
- improving neglect and abuse situations
- promoting academic and pro-social functioning
- strengthening family units.
The mental health services we offer are cost-free and can be supplemented with psychiatry and psychological testing. Our mission is the preservation of families, whenever possible.
CCS
CCS is a program unique to Ulster County, developed to support families with a collaborative approach to modify their adolescent's behavior.
Often, referred teens are exhibiting behaviors and symptoms that are placing them at risk of PINS or JD adjudications and are creating worry and stress to those that love them. Probation, Social Services and Mental Health staff are co-located within the Social Services complex in order to enhance effectiveness, communication and services for each child. Contacts can also occur in the home, school and community so that support is provided where it is needed most.
Through timely assessment, prevention services, and by working closely with family systems, CCS has been able to achieve a 90% success rate in helping children reduce at-risk behaviors and avert out-of-home placement.
Clinical Supervisor: MaryEllen Schneider, LCSW-R (845) 334-5064
NEXIS
NEXIS stands for “Neighborhoods Evolving by Connecting Individuals to Supports.” It is a highly innovative program developed in 2004 as a family and community-based intervention model for families and children acting-out their emotions and behaviors associated with traumatic events in their lives. A team of one therapist and one caseworker work together to support each family in the home in making environmental changes necessary for the child to develop new and better ways of calming her/himself in times of intense stress. Referents can range from young children to older adolescents up to 17 years of age.
Clinical Supervisor: Erika Scannell, LCSW-R (845) 334-5081
MST
Multisystemic Therapy (MST) is an intensive family and community-based treatment program for youth, ages 12-17 years old, who demonstrate negative behaviours in the community, at school or at home. MST recognizes that environmental systems play a critical role in a youth's world and each system requires attention for effective change that is needed to improve the quality of life for youth and their families. In this model, the caregiver is seen as the central point of contact working directly with the therapist, to create needed change. An MST therapist is available multiple times throughout the week including after-hours on-call to assist families and their support system in managing and preventing crises. MST is an evidence-based, short-term model (typically 4-5 months) that has shown to be effective with even the most challenging adolescents. Our MST program specifically targets youth whose high-risk choices put them at risk of charges in the juvenile justice system. MST Therapists work directly with the family and their support system, collaborating with outside providers.
Clinical Supervisor: Allison Patsos, LCSW (845) 741-5009