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Children generally entered the program on the first Monday in
the cycle, but could in fact enter at any pOint. Days missed because
of late admittance were made up during the following session.
Each session was staffed by two to four client supervisors and
one or two educational specialists each evening. Most of the client
supervisor positions were filled by probation officers while the
educational specialists were certified teachers, The number of staff
employed during anyone session was pre-determined on the basis of
every other session being open to both boys and girls, The 20 staff
members working in the program were scheduled to work two weeks out
of every eight. Educational specialists worked their two weeks consecutively
while client supervisors alternated dUring the cycle,
While the original program was designed for pre-delinquent male
offenders only, the present program was expanded to include females
as well. As stated previouslY~ girls were to be admitted every
second session only with sufficient staff to run the programs separately.
A child with a so-called sophisticated pattern of delinquency
could also be placed in the program under the new guidelines,
In both the pilot program and the one being evaluated. a point
system was an integral component. As mentioned previously, the most
visible result of such a system was the ability to earn Friday evening
off and have a later curfew. In the pilot pr~ect each person entering
was given 100 points and had to earn an additional 50 by completing
assignments given them by their supervisors and by performing extra
clean-up-type duties. Under the present system, all points are earned
on a nightly basis.
Two evenings a week, the parents of participants attended twohour
counseling sessions. Parental involvement was viewed as part of