YOUTH POLICY BOOK MAKES EXAMPLE OF GIRARDOT CENTER

Today's popular political ideology is to be tough on juvenile offenders -- reveal their criminal records, lock them up, make them pay.

The idea works for some, but professionals in juvenile treatment prefer reformation over incarceration when possible. The Girardot Center in Cape Girardeau struck a balance between the two and soon will be nationally recognized for it.

A professor with The Center for the Study of Youth Policy, located in the University of Utah-Salt Lake City, will feature the Girardot Center in a book about juvenile programs. Missouri is the first state in the nation to pair universities with juvenile treatment, and the Girardot Center was first in the state.

It is on a corner of the Southeast Missouri State University campus. More than 20 college interns work at the center each year, and a new program, Proctors, matches low-risk juvenile offenders with college roommates to help them mature and survive on their own.

Russ Van Vleet, the book's author, promoted a similar idea at the University of Utah. Regents wouldn't hear of putting a juvenile facility on college ground, even though empty, suitable buildings existed.

"Missouri did just the opposite," Van Vleet said. "The book will compare some states that have gone the direction of Missouri to states that have gone the construction route, just creating more beds for incarceration.

"The Girardot program is the best in the state as an example of a creative, innovative program."

It opened on the Southeast campus in 1991, offering seven programs. Now there are 12, and each has a waiting list.

Three levels of juveniles, ages 12-17, are served at the Girardot Center. The high-risk teens live in group homes and are educated at the center, medium-risk teens live in group homes and attend Cape Public Schools and low-risk teens live with their parents or guardians and attend daytime programs at the center.

Jim Davis, facility manager, said he doesn't believe in incarcerating juveniles, letting them sit for months and putting them back on the street to commit the same crimes. He believes in teaching them to communicate and solve problems without violence.

That's tough to do with an adolescent, especially with all the tough choices facing today's youth. But tactics used at the Girardot Center seem to be working. Davis mentioned one former resident who owns a successful cabinet business. Another is a star football player on a junior college team.

"We all want to excel at something," Davis said. "We all want to learn and to grow. These kids have those same needs. When you put them in a situation where they can meet those needs, they make an effort."

Kirvy, a 15-year-old from Rolla, made the effort to do better. Just last year, he was a resident student sentenced to eight months under Missouri Division of Youth Services care. He had been using and selling drugs, drinking heavily and running with a gang.

Kirvy went home after completing the Girardot Center program, but his family situation hadn't changed. He and his siblings received little supervision and were left to raise themselves.

"I told myself it would be OK to use drugs again and start running with the same people again," Kirvy said. "I realized what was happening when my grades started slipping."

He called his former counselor at the center, and the counselor brought Kirvy back to Cape Girardeau.

The teen attends school at the center and is part of a group called Junior Staff -- teens who have successfully completed the program but come back to help others. Students come to him for guidance, and he makes sure things at the center run smoothly.

Soon, Kirvy will be placed in foster care, another Girardot Center service.

Van Vleet's book, featuring the history of the center and the programs offered there, should be completed and distributed to state offices throughout the nation soon.