............Joliet Teen REACH

The Teen REACH Program provides 6 prevention-focused core services:

• Improving educational performance—Includes time to do homework, tutoring in basic skills, and enrichment programs that encourage creativity.
• Life skills education—Encompasses training and education that promotes the development of healthy lifestyles and encourages abstinence from risk-taking behaviors in the areas of alcohol and other substance abuse.
• Parental involvement—Includes opportunities for parents and/or guardians to meet with staff to discuss their children's activities and to participate in events that strengthen parent-child bonds and community involvement. The Teen REACH Program utilizes information obtained from families and participants in decisions related to overall program design and activities.
• Recreation, sports, cultural and artistic activities—Includes providing activities and arranging safe outlets or youth to try new skills and develop new interests, to build friendships, find their place in a group, and gain developmentally relevant experiences.
• Positive adult mentors—Programs must allow opportunities for youth to develop and maintain positive, sustained relationships with caring adults through mentoring and other programs that emphasize one-on-one interactions.
• Service learning activities—Service-learning is a method of teaching and learning that connects classroom lessons with meaningful service to the community. Students build academic skills while strengthening communities through service. Service learning combines service tasks with structured, youth-driving opportunities that link the task to self-reflection, self-discovery, and the acquisition and comprehension of values, skills and knowledge content with service tasks.

Teen REACH is a statewide program funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services.
For more information:

• http://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=31973

Tutoring and Activities Schedule

Education Service Network will conduct periodic testing and collect report cards from youth enrolled in the program to assess the effectiveness of the Core Services provided:

• Tutoring is offered Monday-Thursday from 3:30-6:30 p.m. 
• Activities are offered five days a week at each site. 
• Special activities include a number of coordinated activities such as American Red Cross trainings, Lights on After School celebration, Jeopardy scholastic bowl, spelling bees, essay contests, hands-on forensic science class, field trips, summer seminars at University of St. Francis Science Department, and recreational and cultural experiences.