We offer a variety of youth programs that we target to the places where we can have the most impact. These programs have been the area of our greatest focus and growth for the last several years.

School Programs

The goal of our Truancy Program is to prevent students from falling down the slippery slope towards dropping out of school by addressing serious attendance issues as soon as they begin to develop. We do this through intervention in two different situations.

We provide services in schools by using specially trained mediators to facilitate agreements between parents and schools and by connecting students and their families with other agencies that can provide “wrap around” services. Through this program, we get to the root of the reason the student has failed to attend school and facilitate strategies to solve the dilemma.

The impact of our Truancy Program is improved attendance for approximately two thirds of the students we assist.

We also provide mediation services through a program in collaboration with the Prosecutor’s Office. Through this program, we provide mediation services to juveniles and parents receiving ordinance tickets for truancy and a variety of other offenses.

We also offer restorative practices (including anti-bullying) and peer mediation services in local schools. These programs are designed to improve school climate, reduce suspensions and rebuild a sense of community in the schools.

An additional program WMC offers is Special Education Mediations and Facilitations. Parents of children with disabilities sometimes have disagreements over the services a school is providing their child. These disagreements can take up lots of time and cause serious friction between the parents and school. Before handling these cases, our mediators take an additional training to ensure they understand the complex issues involved in special education disputes.

Child Protection/Permanency Planning

Children facing and dealing with placement in the foster care system confront some of the most difficult challenges imaginable. Our program seeks to bring together everyone with the ability to impact a child’s life in a positive way in order to ensure that the child’s critical needs are addressed as quickly and effectively as possible. We receive referrals from the Juvenile Court as well as the West Wayne Office of the Wayne County Department of Human Services.