The consequences/risks of being disconnected could be:family poverty, family welfare receipt, low parent education, family instability, juvenile justice or child welfare involvement, low educational attainment, teen parent hood and/or lack of civic and economic engagement.Young people who leave school and do not become part of the workforce may have difficulty gaining the skills and knowledge needed to attain self- sufficiency.

The goal of this program is to develop relationships with up to 15 young people in the first year ages 16-24 years

Strategies to implement this program include:

• Meet with other agencies and community-based programs that are natural “hang outs” for this “disconnected” age group of youth ages 16-24 years who are not in school and not working. We have identified such places as the YMCA, the library, Over Flow Café, local fast food establishments, and sharing space with another Health Department program in order to hold conversations and groups with these youth. Use of incentives to develop relationships and engage youth on an ongoing basis is very important.
• Develop linkages with educational and employment opportunities. We will specifically work with Chesapeake College in Cambridge to support youth in obtaining a GED or pursuing college courses. We plan to begin a discussion with Dorchester Career and Technology Center (DCTC) for possible expansion of their programs to youth who are not attending high school.We will develop linkages with the local Chamber of Commerce, Workforce Investment Board and the Office of Economic Development to gain access to better employment opportunities for youth.
• Develop a list of referral sources for a variety of needs from mental health and substance use, to housing and food shortage resources.Developing personal connections to these resources will build better linkages for our youth.
• Use CAFAS as an evaluation and outcome measurement tool. This will be done within 30 days of the initial contact and when a service plan is completed.
• We are developing a comprehensive survey/evaluation tool that will engage youth and lead to the development of a contract (service plan) that will guide the interventions and outcomes for each youth. The goal is to have a service plan written and signed within 30 days of referral.We anticipate that many of these contacts will be in the home of the youth, but to meet the needs of these young people, the outreach worker will offer flexibility to maintain a connection with the individuals. Recognizing that youth who are disconnected are often impacted by challenges and barriers which may obstruct their engagement in program activities, we intend to follow and “keep in touch” with youth who may be reluctant to make an initial commitment on a bi-weekly basis for up to 6 months.
• Once a service plan is in place, face to face contact will occur with the youth no less than 3x per month . The service plan is a working document to guide and review with the youth in order to insure that movement towards more independence is being achieved. As often as possible, linking youth with each other to develop a positive peer network that builds accountability and social supports is an important goal.
• Even when employment and/or schooling begins, Bind Together will continue to meet, as program funding allows, with the youth until they are successfully “connected’.

16-24 year olds who are not working and attending school

This program is new in FY 2017. Data for the first half of the year is limited since the program wasn't approved and fully implemented until November 2016. All data will be available at year end.