Boys & Girls Town Eastern Missouri Campus in St. Louis
Served More Than 1,071 Children and Family Members in 2007
St. Louis City & County are Among the Top Referral Counties for Services
St. Louis, Mo. (July 21, 2008) – Boys & Girls Town of Missouri’s Eastern Region based in St. Louis served 1,071 children and family members in 2007 through a variety of treatment programs. Boys & Girls Town served 5,400 children and family members statewide from its four campuses in St. James, St. Louis, Springfield and Columbia. Boys & Girls Town of Missouri treats at-risk children with histories of abuse, neglect, severe behavior disorders and psychological problems.
The 357 children served by the Eastern Region were treated in the following programs:
- Foster Care Case Management: 162 children
- Fostering Futures: 58 children and their families. (Fostering Futures provides foster parents with parent education and support along with crisis intervention assistance and education.)
- Community Treatment Homes: 39 children. (Families are licensed and trained to care for and guide a child in his or her treatment program.)
- The Academy at Boys & Girls Town: 32 children. (Day treatment education.)
- Residential treatment program: 28 children.
- Outreach therapy services: 26 children.
- Emergency shelter care: 7 children.
- Family Focus program: 5 children. (Helps involve the family in the treatment process and assists family members in a child’s transition back to his/her home.)
- More than 700 individuals and family members were assisted through various auxiliary therapy treatment services.
St. Louis City & County are Among the Top Referral Counties for Services
Following Greene County, St. Louis City and St. Louis County were the top referral counties for children treated in Boys & Girls Town of Missouri treatment programs followed by Jefferson, Christian and St. Charles counties.
Estimated Number of Abused and Neglected Children in the St. Louis Region
Figures from Citizens for Missouri’s Children’s 2007 Missouri Kids Count Data Book Online indicate 9,094 children in St. Louis City and St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson counties were identified as abused or neglected – an average of 21.8 children per 1,000 population. Numbers are likely much higher than this as not all abuse or neglect is reported. In 2006, the average for Missouri was 32.7.
Where do Boys & Girls Town children come from?
Children in Boys & Girls Town programs are referred by Missouri Children’s Division (69 percent), private insurance companies (8 percent), Missouri Alliance for Children and Families (5 percent), the Division of Youth Services (3 percent), the Department of Mental Health (2 percent), school districts (2 percent) and a few others.
In 2007, Boys & Girls Town helped children from 88 of Missouri’s 114 counties representing 76 percent of the state, plus the City of St. Louis and other states. Forty-three percent of the children at Boys & Girls Town are treated in residential programs. Foster care case management comprises 34 percent of the children served.
Where do Boys & Girls Town children go?
Of the youth leaving Boys & Girls Town residential care in 2007, 81 percent returned to live with a parent or family member, or transitioned into foster care or independent living services, or other less restrictive environment.
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Columbia Region
