is a professionally staffed outpatient mental health center for children and adolescents who experience psychological, behavioral, developmental, social or family problems. They are dedicated to reducing emotional suffering and dysfunctional behavior, strengthening families, and helping each individual achieve optimal potential.

The Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut served 2,027 children, adolescents, and their families in 2011 and 2,009 in 2010.

 

 

 

 

The mission of LEAP is to develop the strengths and talents of young leaders who create and implement year-round, community-based programs designed to achieve positive academic and social outcomes for children living in high poverty urban neighborhoods.

LEAP was founded in 1992 by a group of New Haven educators, Yale graduate students, social workers, and community activists whose shared vision was to reverse the devastating effect of poverty upon children by educating the “whole child” - academically, socially, and physically – and by mentoring, teaching and coaching teenagers and young adults how to be mentors, teachers and coaches themselves. Twenty years later, LEAP continues to supply at-risk young people with tools to empower them to break the cycle of poverty and the consequent cycles of school failure, poor health and violence.

Currently, LEAP’s programs run at three community-based sites, Farnam Courts, Dwight and Church Street South; one school-based site, Wexler –Grant Community School; and in the children’s Community Center program at the Roslyn Milstein Meyer LEAP Community Center at 31 Jefferson Street.

The number-one goal of LEAP’s literacy-based Children’s Program is to develop active readers who value themselves and education. 83.1% of the children responding to a recent survey said they liked to read. Only 67.6% said that they liked to read before LEAP. Because of LEAP, 94% of the children beat the “summer slide” by maintaining their reading levels from Spring 2011 over the summer into Fall 2011, with 29% showing improvement on assessed literacy skills.

LEAP’s overall goal for Youth Development Program participants is for all teenagers and young adults to value education and be CLEAR: Civically Engaged; Leaders, personally and professionally; Effective Mentors; And Responsible Decision Makers. For teenagers, the number-one goal is for them to graduate from high school and be accepted to a 2- or 4-year university. For the past four years, we have had a 100% high school graduation rate; for the past two years, 100% have also been accepted to college.

Leap helped 320 students in 2011 and 278 in 2010.