Luna County Strengthening Families seeks applicants for program

Bill Armendariz, Deming Headlight
·2 min read
Charges
Charges

DEMING – The Luna County Strengthening Program (SFP) is welcoming families to register for a one (1) week intensive group. The dates will be June 6-10, 2022 virtually; each day, the families will complete two sessions to complete the 10-session curriculum.

The goals of SFP are to increase family strengths and resilience and reduce risk factors for problem behaviors in high-risk children, including behavioral, emotional, academic, and social problems. Parents will also learn the three most important factors in Family Bonding, Boundaries, and Monitoring.

The greatest benefits to the Strengthening Families Program is :

• Prevent teen substance abuse and other behavior problems.

• Strengthen communication skills between parents and youth.

• Increase youth academic achievement.

• Prevent violent and aggressive youth behavior, both at home and at school.

The admission criteria is as follows:

• Must have children ages 10-14

• Non-adjudicated youth (4 month informal status is acceptable)

Please submit the referral (attached) via this email or contact Yossie Nieblas at 575-543-6562 no later than June 3, 2022.

Intervention overview

The Strengthening Families Program (SFP) is a family skills training intervention that provides Children’s Life Skills, Parenting Life Skills, and Family Life Skills sessions to strengthen parenting and family functioning.

Families served

SFP is designed for “higher-risk families” with children 10-17 years-old.

SFP assumes obstacles and resistance to learning new skills.  Delivered successfully to families with substance-involved parents or youth, behavioral problems, justice, mental health and corrections involvement.

Intervention objectives

• Strengthen parenting skills

• Improve children’s behavior

• Improve social skills

• Reduce child depression and aggression

• Enhance family functioning

Core components

Parents and children meet separately for one hour to participate in the Parenting Skills and Children’s Life Skills class. They rejoin during the second hour to take part in the Family Life Skills class.

Intervention topics:

• Parenting Life Skills

• Social rewards for good behavior

• Clear communication

• Effective discipline

• Children’s Life Skills

• Social and life skills

• Effective communication

• Problem solving and coping skills

• Family Life Skills

• Therapeutic child play

• Family meetings

• Problem solving and planning

Outcomes

Parent/Family

• Increased parental supervision and monitoring

• Increased parent involvement

• Increased parent efficacy, skills, and confidence

• Reduction in parent alcohol and drug use

• Increased positive parenting behavior including use of social rewards, effective limit setting, discipline, communication

• Improved family relationships, less stress

• Improved family organization, cohesion, communication, and resilience

• Reduced symptoms of depression

• Higher family reunification rates

Child

• Reduction in depression and aggression

• Improved social skills

• Improved school performance

• More pro-social behavior at home, away

• Fewer days in foster care

Adaptations and enhancements

Culture

SFP has been successfully delivered for multiple ethnic groups in the US, Canada, and abroad. It is now distributed in culturally sensitive, rather than culturally specific, versions.  All group leader trainings stress adaptation in delivery to local families and conditions.

This article originally appeared on Deming Headlight: Luna County Strengthening Families seeks applicants for program