What is Communities That Care? ___Your community focuses on one or more of the five youth problem behaviors: Substance use Delinquency Teen pregnancy School drop-out Violence ___You attend to all four domains in which risk factors occur: Individual/peer Family School Community ___You encourage the three protective factors: Individual characteristics Bonding Healthy beliefs and clear standards Why would you want (and not want) to adopt the Communities That Care approach? You use CTC because ___CTC is grounded in theory and practice. ___CTC is inclusive and participatory. ___CTC takes a community perspective. ___CTC involves training at every step. ___CTC provides a menu of best practices to choose from. ___CTC is adapted to the needs of each community. ___CTC includes evaluation and adjustment as an integral part of any effort. ___CTC seems to work for most problem behaviors. You see disadvantages to CTC in that: ___The CTC approach is only inclusive and participatory for certain people. ___CTC allows the choice of only a finite number of approaches. ___Choosing from among best practices may encourage communities merely to follow directions, rather than throwing heart and soul into the effort. ___CTC is narrowly focused on youth and specific behaviors. ___CTC is, to a certain extent, based on assumptions. ___CTC has a service to sell. Who should be involved in Communities That Care? You strive to involve: ___Those most directly affected by the problem behavior(s). ___Those indirectly affected by the problem behavior(s). ___Those who deal with the consequences of the problem behaviors in the community. ___Concerned citizens. ___The media. How do you employ the Communities That Care approach? ___You gauge the awareness of the community. ___You provide community education about the problem behaviors. ___You mobilize the community, starting with key leaders (or a more inclusive group) and a community board. ___You conduct an assessment of community needs and resources. ___You create a strategic plan for the initiative, choosing from among best practices in the areas of family, school, and community. ___You implement your plan. ___You evaluate the process and outcomes of your intervention, and adjust it accordingly. ___You maintain your gains, and continue your efforts over time.
