Archived News |

July 9, 2009

ĆŪ½ŪÖ±²„ Marriage and Family Therapy Program receives $385,000 in grant funding

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation recently awarded a $385,000 grant to the University of Louisiana at Monroeā€™s Marriage and Family Therapy Program.

Dr. Jana P. Sutton is the principal investigator and clinical supervisor of the university's initiative.

Sutton, at the foundationā€™s request, submitted and received approval for a ā€œModels for Changeā€ (MfC) grant proposal on behalf of the Ouachita and Morehouse Parishes Juvenile Justice System last February.

The award is for a two-year period and began July 1.

The initiativeā€™s overarching goal is to accelerate the pace of judicial district reform by increasing access to evidence-based services, according to Sutton.

ā€œEvidence-based services promote the use of scientifically supported methods to accurately identify and address the individual needs of youth at the point of intake,ā€ she said.

Sutton said the model would refer youth and/or their families to appropriate local programs and services, along with follow-up to measure the success of the interventions that are implemented.

ā€œThe initiative will also look at developing funding mechanisms to support an increase in evidence-based treatment practices for juvenile justice involved youth in the community, even after the award period is over,ā€ said Sutton.

The initiative is a partnership between ĆŪ½ŪÖ±²„ (Marriage and Family Therapy and Psychology, with Dr. Joe McGahan serving as lead researcher), the Childrenā€™s Coalition, the Fourth Judicial Drug Court, the Fourth Judicial District Attorneyā€™s Office, and the Youth Services Planning Board.

PLEASE NOTE: Some links and e-mail addresses in these archived news stories may no longer work, and some content may include events which are no longer relevent, or reference individuals and/or organizations no longer associated with ĆŪ½ŪÖ±²„.