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Supporting 'the pack': Project Wolf brings families together

The Mooresville-Decatur Times - 5/19/2018

MARTINSVILLE

For many families, a trip to the woods may constitute an adventurous vacation or a long-held tradition, but for the participants of Project Wolf, it's a life-changing experience.

A collaboration between the Morgan County Probation Department Bradford Woods and Agape Therapeutic Riding, Project Wolf is the result of nearly 20 years of trial and error, adaptation, evolution and hard work by all parties involved.

The goal, according to MCPD Juvenile Intake Officer and Juvenile Community Corrections Coordinator Jeff Faudree, is to improve communication, conflict-resolution skills and trust among children and adults.

For 20 consecutive weeks - along with two weekends, one for families and a wilderness adventure for just the children - youths who have had run-ins with the law and their parent/s or guardians meet for three to four hours every Monday to take part in a series of activities designed to strengthen familial and community bonds.

"It's a win-win for everyone," said Faudree, who has been involved with Project Wolf since its inception. "It's a pretty exclusive program. It's hard to find programs like this anywhere in Indiana. ... It's been really successful. We've reduced recidivism by about 70, 75 percent, so it's been a really successful program in that regard."

Started in 1998 by the MCPD as a weekend bootcamp, as was the standard at time, the program has changed over the years as

evidence-based practices became more prevalent. Law enforcement and probation officers, along with therapists, would apply the more "scared-straight tactic" program, according to Faudree, adding it was initially very punitive and corporal.

Around 2002, Indiana University-owned Bradford Woods hired new staff, such as coordinator for therapeutic programs Ricardo Moraes, who Faudree described as more nurturing and proponents for self-esteem boosting programming.

Project Wolf expanded that year to eight to 10 weeks of sessions, based around rebuilding lines of communication within the family.

Two years ago, facing dwindling funding from the Department of Corrections, the MCPD helped IU make Project Wolf a state-contracted service in the Department of Child Services Region 9, which includes Morgan, Boone, Hendricks, Putnam and Montgomery counties. That means juvenile offenders from anywhere within the area - actually the state, as it is categorized as "unique" - can be recommended and accepted for the program. So far, one child from Monroe County has graduated the program, while another is currently enrolled.

"So this has really opened the doors, in my opinion, for IU not only to work within the criminal justice system locally and other counties in the area, but also opened the door for the Department of Child Services to really benefit from parent-child relationships," Faudree said. "This programs could really enhance our community."

It is also cost-effective, as therapeutic services outside the program would charge thousands more than the $2,500 per family it costs the state to fund Project Wolf, based on Faudree's estimates.

Each group is split into two cohorts by age, with 12- to 14-year-olds in one and 15- to 18-year-olds in another. Faudree said they hope to eventually divide further into gender-specific groups once more counties start sending kids.

Project Wolf runs twice a year, in the winter/spring and fall/winter. Faudree said they max out at six families per cohort, aiming to get 24 families through annually. The cohorts alternate between outdoor therapeutic work with Bradford Woods staff and equine-assisted therapy with Agape.

"It's a unique program they run out there, it's unlike any other program," he said. "It's a program that's definitely going to grow."

No lone wolves

The name Project Wolf arose from the hope that it would instill in families the same high degree of closeness as wolf packs in the wild. The program's evolving structure now seeks to address the lack of quality time among families, which Faudree said increase criminogenic needs - problems, characteristics, traits or issues that directly relate to someone's likelihood to re-offend. The program, he said, only accepts moderate- to high-risk offenders.

Jordan McIntire, Bradford Woods military and family programming assistant director, said she believes the diminishing sense of community is the root of a lot of the problems in the U.S. today.

"That isolation is not healthy or good for anyone, so I think that they come to work on their family relationship," she said. "But they also build a family together, which is pretty cool."

Using evidence-based practices from the Positive Youth Development Model, activities are designed to garner results, not just entertain. McIntire said Bradford Woods plans to begin submitting some evidence-based assessments and evaluations to show that what they're doing works and add credibility to the program, which they hope to continue expanding.

"What we try to do, instead of just picking activities that we think are fun or cool, we make sure that we justify them based off of the model," McIntire said. "While the activities won't really change all that much, the families all have different goals that they're working on that are individualized."

Being around other families, she said, also helps build community support and social cohesion. After months together, they forge bonds and care for one another, she said.

"They form a relationship you don't really want to get rid of," she said. "We have the parents attend it, because instead of just trying to influence the individual child, we're also trying to influence their micro-system around them.

"Our job is easy - the easy part is just doing the activity," McIntire said. "It's then up to them to pick out those little gold nuggets."

Project Wolf monitors its participants for three to six months after the program, but McIntire said about half stay in touch with staff on their own accord, like the mother who brought her a birthday gift earlier this spring, despite having graduated in December.

Faudree said over the years, Bradford Woods staffers have gone on to mentor some of the kids, while some youths have come back to work part time at the camp. Parents, he said, have returned as volunteers, as well.

"The great thing about this program is that it seems like over the course of almost two decades now that IU has really helped tweak this program to what is today," he said. "And they've really embraced evidenced-based practices and methods that work and are proven to work."

Both Faudree and McIntire said when the participants first arrive, they don't want to be there. But by the end, they don't want to leave.

Learning together

The current Project Wolf session is roughly halfway done, having started Feb. 12, and includes five families in each cohort.

May 7 was the first time the groups got to go outside due to the extended cold weather.

That day, the three targets at the Bradford Woods' archery station sat covered with bright yellow strips of paper bearing a number of messages: Drive, patience, healthy habits, trust, coping, positive relationships, support system, fun and positive energy, among others.

The shooters, made up of the older cohort, took aim with a compound bow or crossbow and fired, each for a different word or phrase. The ones they hit, they got to take. Later, they explained why they wanted that word, and how it could apply to their own life.

One participant, Sue, successfully got trust, but had also been aiming for patience, something she said she needs more of in her life. Her mother Pam said she tried to get healthy habits.

Mitch brought back several from the range, including positive energy and goals, saying he wanted more of the former to help him learn to deal with problems better.

Earlier, Mitch had assisted Sue after others noticed she was left-handed and not shooting effectively. Group members aided one another unprompted, giving advice on how to hold the bow or where to shoot.

McIntire explained the activity, called "What are you aiming for?", wasn't just about shooting - it was also supposed to make them think about the values they had talked about the week prior, which were now their targets. She said everyone always has to choose between two values.

The younger participants took part in an activity down at Agape called "Raging river," where the group was supposed to work as a team to cross the "river" using only a handful of items while also guiding two horses labeled empathy and trust.

Linda Hazzard, Agape program director, said it was easier when everyone worked together.

"Everybody should be part of the plan," she said, adding she and the other staff do not guide the cohorts in their efforts, allowing them to find their own solutions. "It has to be their journey. Everybody's idea of coming together looks different."

Echoing McIntire and Faudree's sentiments, Hazzard said when the families first begin equine-therapy, they are skittish of the horses, who dislike the negative energy the youths and parents give off. Eventually, she said the families come to care for the horses, and vice versa.

One mother, who "lost" the use of her foot during the crossing, was aided by the others.

"I don't like asking for help, but it makes it a lot easier," she said.

The lessons of Project Wolf were plainly on display with both cohorts, from the assistance offered to one another and teamwork it took to finish activities.

Sue, from the older group, said the program had helped make things at home better, while her mother, Pam, agreed, saying it caused psychological changes and taught them how not to be so harsh to one another.

Mitch said he and his father, who attends Project Wolf sessions with him, had a very hostile relationship a few years ago, but with the assertive communication taught in the program, it has improved.

"We've come together for the first time," he said.