4 Troubled Teens Blog

Freddy Krueger isn't just a character in a movie. It's also the nickname of a Las Vegas inmate who participates in a Scared Straight program for troubled teens.

"The burly, bald criminal with the intense stare seems to enjoy frightening troubled youngsters, many of whom have been forced by court order to visit him, with graphic tales of the very unpleasant things he'll do to them if they ever end up near him in grown-up jail."

While the threats may be exaggerated for dramatic effect, it doesn't detract from the very real, and grim, picture that's painted of life behind bars. Many parents consider it their last best shot at keeping their kids from living lives of crime. Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal

Labels: juvenile_crime, role_models, criminals

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The Prince's Trust Charity in the United Kingdom has found that lack of an adult role model is one of the primary reasons teenagers join gangs.

"In a bleak report on youth culture, the charity founded in 1976 by the Prince of Wales said that more than a third of 16 to 25-year-olds say they do not have a parent they consider a role model, so turn to their peer group instead."

The report echoes warnings issued earlier by South Wales' Chief Constable Barbara Wilding, who said that tribal loyalty has replaced family ties for many young people. More than half of teens that dropped out of high school cited friends as their main role models and less than one-third said they would turn to a parent for help. Source: The Times (UK)

Labels: parents, gangs, role_models

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The Prince's Trust Charity has released a report which states that an increasing number of teens are joining gangs because they have no adult role model. The report found that more than a third of 16- to 25-year-olds don't have a parent they look up to.

"The findings of the report, The Culture of Youth Communities, echo a warning by Barbara Wilding, the Chief Constable of South Wales, made public last month, that tribal loyalty had replaced family ties for a generation of angry young people..."

Paul Brown, a Prince's Trust Charity director, said the report proves that young people need a sense of security and acceptance in their lives, and will look for it anywhere they think they can find it. Source: The Time (United Kingdom)

Labels: parents, gangs, role_models

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Tristen Hurt was just 15 when his girlfriend became pregnant. After his son was born, he started attending a program called "Young Men in Transition" that teaches teenage boys how to be dads.

"Since 1994 it has helped about 450 very young fathers - more than 90 percent of whom started in the program - complete high school, get jobs and establish relationships with their children."

Tristen and his girlfriend were married two years ago, and Tristen in on the road to becoming a surgical technician. He has great relationships with his kids and credits "Young Men in Transition" with teaching him what it means to be a dad. Source: Star-Tribune, Minneapolis, MN

Youth Care offers a residential treatment program for pregnant teens.

Labels: pregnancy, fathers, role_models

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Two decades ago, Frederica Wilson established the organization that would become 5000 Role Models of Excellence, a mentorship program for at-risk youth in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Legislation has recently been introduced that would expand this program, as well as other programs like it.

"Advocates for the dropout intervention strategies say they envision Role Models someday taking root in every county, and possibly every school, in the state. The idea is to match at-risk minority youth with successful black men in school-based programs. The goal is to reduce the number of African-American youths who drop out of school and enter prison."

If passed, the legislation would create a state-sanctioned method of funneling both private and public money into Role Models and other similar programs. Source: Miami-Dade Sun-Sentinel

Labels: mentoring, influences, role_models

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Britney Spears, Amy Winehouse, and Lindsay Lohan are celebrities that many teenagers, at one point, liked and admired. But recently interviewed high school students expressed concern about the examples these celebs are setting for them and their peers.

"[Yvonne] Santiago said stars like Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Amy Winehouse, who have publicly gone in and out of rehabilitation for addiction, make it seem as if drugs and alcohol are less serious problems than they really are. 'I think it makes kids think, "OK, if I do drugs and get messed up, then I can just go to rehab like Britney, and be all better, hooray,"' she said."

Teens are worried about the way some celebrities downplay the seriousness of drug and alcohol addiction and make rehab look easy. Many adults worry, too, because teens don't see the negative consequences of addiction in the lives of celebrities.

Labels: media, influences, role_models

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Mentoring has always been considered a face-to-face activity, but one program has allowed mentors to increase their level of involvement through a unique cyber-program.

"By setting up an online system, the men can check in with the students more frequently than they would be able to if they had to rely on face-to-face meetings..."

Mentors and youth still meet face-to-face, but not as often. The new program is also enabling the young participants to learn computer programs like PowerPoint and improve their resume writing skills. Read more at AZStarNet.com.

Private college prep boarding schools offer smaller class sizes and more personal attention. Find a school at BoardingSchoolsInfo.com.

Labels: mentoring, role_models, skills

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American teens are talking and blogging about the pregnancy of 16-year-old Jamie Lynn Spears, a sister to pop star Britney Spears.

According to stories in the New York Times and other newspapers, teen girls feel let down by Jamie's pregnancy because they identify her with the character she plays on Nickeleon's Zoey 101. Zoey is a straight-A, virginal student, an empowered young teen who leaves home at age thirteen to enter a formerly all-boys boarding school.

Google recently reported that online searches for "Britney Spears" are second only to searches for "God," as people keep track of the celebrity's trials of divorce, public nudity, career failures, pregnancy, and so forth.

Jamie was always the "good sister" and a role model for preteens. Some teachers and parents are using Jamie's pregnancy as a "teachable moment."

If you're dealing with a pregnant teen, you might want to learn more about Youth Care. Youth Care is a residential treatment center with a program for pregnant girls.

Labels: pregnancy, influences, role_models

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Fourteen years ago, as school principal Frederica Wilson was driving to school, she was shocked to find herself hoping that one her more disruptive students would be absent that day. The thought caused her to start asking questions, and eventually asking for help. Her initial effort has become the 5000 Role Models of Excellence and has helped more than 15,000 troubled young men.

"The program is funded by the [Miami] school system and by private and corporate sponsors. Its components are many: workshops; scholarships; a basketball tournament; peer, group and one-on-one mentoring; and field trips, including to those opposite poles of black male potential; colleges and penitentiaries."

Kionne McGhee participated in the program. While in school he was suspended 47 times and was labeled emotionally handicapped. Today, he's an assistant state attorney.

Parents, teachers, and other role models can find help and information about adolescent drug treatment at Adolescent-Susbstance-Abuse.com.

Labels: mentoring, influences, role_models

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At a recent gathering, Staten Island parents talked about the sharp drug use increase they've seen lately among their teenage children. Borough President James Molinaro expressed concern that most parents choose to ignore the early warning signs.

"Dr. Kipnis summarized the attitude of many parents he has spoken with as, 'We live in a great place. There's no one selling heroin on the corner, so I can't believe that my child is addicted.'"

Some parents also said that, because they grew up in the 1960s and 1970s - and may have used drugs themselves, they feel their authority as parents is compromised. However, Joe  the parent of a teen who started using marijuana but quickly progressed to harder drugs  says that's no excuse, explaining that a parent can't know if their kid will be the one who can't stop using. Read more at SILive.com.

Adolescent drug treatment programs can help get your teen's life back on track. Learn about the myth's of alcohol and teen drug abuse at AdolescentSubstanceAbuse.com.

Labels: drug_use, influences, role_models

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The Hip-hop Project, a documentary about a unique New York City program that uses rap to help troubled teens transform their lives, opens in theatres today. The focus of the documentary is Chris Rolle, aka Kazi, who was a student of the program.

"'The whole curriculum was based on the arts,' Rolle says. 'So if you were studying American history, you did it through playwriting... We created a play, but to create the play we had to get the information. So we didn't even realize we were learning American history because we were focused on doing this thing that we actually liked.'"

A few years after Rolle graduated, and his former teacher Scott Rosenberg created the program Hip-hop Project, which is used not only to educate, but to help the teens heal and overcome the obstacles of their lives. The program culminates with the recording and release of a CD. Read more at Chron.com.

Other obstacles teens have to overcome can include teen drug use and abuse. Learn about how teens can find help for teen drug abuse at DrugRehabTreatment.com.

Labels: schools, arts, role_models

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