NORWICH – With the resignation of Chenango County’s director of probation, the county’s probation office is seeking a new lead agency for the Parent Project, a program designed with the parents of strong-willed teens in mind.
Since 2012, the Chenango County Parent Project has been facilitated by former Probation Director Karen Osborn. The program is a no-cost, 10-week series that’s helped scores of local parents put together a toolbox of resources and parenting strategies for dealing with their difficult or out-of-control teen on issues that include school attendance and performance, obstinance, alcohol and drug abuse, and other behavioral issues.
The local success of the program over the years has also spawned two additional programs: the Loving Solutions program which provides parenting strategies for parents of young children; and the Why Try? program geared toward adolescents who are acting out.
Osborn has been instrumental in the condonation of all three programs in Chenango County; but with her departure as the probation department head (due to her relocation to another county), it’s uncertain how – or even if – they will sustain.
“They are programs that the county would like to continue,” Osborn said, noting that the Parent Project, on average, graduates between 15 and 20 people each session. “Right now, things are still up in the air.”
Osborn’s last day at the probation department is Friday, June 3. In the weeks since tendering her resignation, she’s been in talks with county leaders and other county department heads to find someone who can assume responsibility of all three programs – or at least the Parent Project.
“There’s always a lot of interest any time we offer the course, so my hope is that someone will be able to pick up where I leave off. The Department of Social Services or the Youth Bureau seem like they would be a natural fit,” said Osborn. “We’ve also talked about the possibility that the class doesn’t have to be taught by county employees and there might be a stipend for an outsider to teach it.”
One goal of the Parent Project is to prevent kids from entering or re-entering probation services. On average, nearly three-quarters of the parents who complete the program are successful in doing just that. Eight sessions of the Parent Project have been offered since it was introduced in Chenango County in 2012.
Still relatively new, with just three sessions offered since 2015, Loving Solutions hasn’t seen the same level of participation; but interest in the program has been growing, said Osborn.
Osborn led a pilot Why Try? program earlier this year, running it simultaneously with the Parent Project. Nine kids took part in the program.
In July, the Parent Project – a nationwide program – will host a training seminar in California for facilitators across the country. Osborn shared her hopes of the county utilizing available state grant funding to have another county employee attend the conference in order to continue running the program at a local level.
“It’s a valuable program,” she added. “I don’t want to see it go away.”