The Program :
The Elle Foundation in Shreveport, Louisiana operates Shreveport’s Caring for our Adolescents through Resources, Education, and Services (Shreveport CARES) program to provide comprehensive services and support to homeless and runaway youth ages 12 -18.
The Basic Center Program is funded by Administration on Children Youth , and Families.
Our Objective :
Homeless and runaway youth in the target community face myriad safety, health, and emotional risks, including poor parent-child/family relationships, abuse and neglect, bullying, and gang involvement. To address these needs, Shreveport CARES Basic Center Program provides.
- Food and shelter,
- Clothing,
- Transportation,
- Medical and mental health care,
- Academic assistance through tutoring and GED services,
- Adult mentoring from caring adults,
- Career exploration,
- Parental engagement designed to strengthen family supports.
Program Overview :
Shreveport CARES accepts adolescents who are homeless, particularly those who have been“put out” by their family or are throwaways or runaways, and will ensure that they are cared for in a safe environment and that they obtain housing security while re-visioning their lives. We attempt to reunify youth with their families whenever it is determined that returning home presents a safe plan. If safe and secure, the best place for these teens is with their family.
In the meantime, and if returning home is not an option, we provide access to comprehensive wrap-around services, including intensive counseling, so that they have every chance of reorganizing their daily living activities and fulfilling their full potential by building a productive and successful life.
At the Elle Foundation, we encourage consumers to view a crisis in their lives as a positive experience that presents an opportunity make a life change for the better.
