DATE:    12/11/02
CONTACT: Stephen Lance, (803) 414-1735; slance@clemson.edu
WRITER:  Stephanie Jackson, (803) 464-4006
EDITOR:  Diane Palmer, (864) 656-4741; spalmer@clemson.edu

Clemson's Project Turnaround targets
juvenile delinquency, truancy issues 

     SUMMERTON -- Clemson University's Youth Learning Institute (YLI)
offers a program to help six South Carolina counties curb truancy in
students in grades six through nine.
     Project Turnaround (PTA) is in its third year.
     More than 230 students from Clarendon, Florence, Lee, Orangeburg,
Sumter and Williamsburg counties have participated in the program at
R.M. Cooper 4-H Leadership Center in Summerton since its inception.
     The objective is to divert students from the state's juvenile
justice system by reducing the number of status offenders, primarily in
the area of truancy.
     PTA also works to increase personal confidence and enhance
positive self-esteem, decrease impulsive behavior and increase problem
solving and communication skills, while strengthening the bond and
level of support between the participants and their families and
increasing participation in positive extra-curricular activities.
     The program participants are students who have been held in
contempt of an order to attend school or have been referred from
solicitor's offices, school districts or department of juvenile justice
offices. The students participate in a set of activities that assist
them in making positive changes in behavior and attitude.
     The first of these activities is a series of six weekend
residential programs, during which students participate in adventure
programming, peer mediation, diversity, life skills and leadership
training, character education and leisure skills training.
     Secondly, the program provides a community support component that
includes random school attendance checks and notification of families
upon absences and the involvement of participants in extracurricular
activities such as school or community sports, music programs, clubs
and recreation programs.
     Participants who successfully complete the six-week program are
rewarded with a week of residential summer camp that will reinforce the
behavioral changes made during the school program, thus bridging the
gap between school sessions.
     "There is a lack of community alternatives that would offer judges
meaningful options other than institutionalizing juveniles,
particularly those guilty of committing only status offenses," said
Pamela Ardern, director of program curriculum for the Youth Learning
Institute.
     Three key areas have been identified as the key factors
contributing to juvenile delinquency: family factors, environmental
factors, and individual factors, according to Ardern. Taking youths out
of their normal environment and placing them in a different setting
allows participants new opportunities for growth without perceived
stereotypes.
     "Success is measured by the student's ability to adapt and learn
from their mistakes," said Ardern.
     The students are made aware of the consequences of their behavior
as it affects the group as a whole and their own personal
accomplishments.
     According to program evaluations, this new approach to solving
problems is making an impact. Following the six-weekend residential
program,
     85% increased self-esteem,
     89% increased their ability to make good decisions,
     87% improved their ability to manage their anger,
     73% increased their problem-solving skills, and
     65% improved their communications skills.

     Clemson University's Robert M. Cooper 4-H Leadership Center has
been involved in youth camping and experiential education for more than
50 years and adventure programming for more than a decade. The Youth
Learning Institute also operates the W.W. Long 4-H Leadership Center in
Aiken.
                              END