Caregiver Alliances for At-Risk and Dangerous Youth: Establishing School and Agency Coordination and Accountability

This groundbreaking work brings schools, agencies, and parents together in a cost-effective, collaborative effort to promote resilience in at-risk and dangerous youths and to deter them from future dangerous behavior. Too often, such youths "fall between the cracks" that exist between the organizations designed to serve them schools, juvenile courts, police departments, health and mental health agencies, and community groups. The authors address this crucial problem by presenting a blueprint for establishing a school-based Caregiver Alliance to facilitate communication and sharing of information across organizational boundaries. Such an alliance can overcome the organizational, legal, technological, and operational obstacles that obstruct school and allied agency cooperation and accountability.