Gadsden / Alabama / United States
The desire of Thirteenth Place, Inc is not to merely maintain services at current levels but to continue to enhance and strengthen services as dictated by the needs of the youth served. In our endeavor to determine the area (s) in which Thirteenth Place, Inc could have the greatest impact on the lives of our children and communities, ongoing contact is maintained between administrative and program staff, community members, social services agencies and school systems. Thus, the scope of services provided by Thirteenth Place, Inc has expanded and broadened through the years. Over the course of time, a major priority of need emerged. The need for long-term residential services was identified as the area of utmost importance due to the fact that the majority of youth in foster care in Northeast Alabama were being placed out of State because of the lack of resources in this area. The establishment of such services would allow youth from the Northeast Alabama area to stay "close to home", thus keeping them in closer proximity to family members and more familiar surroundings which has been proven as a key factor in creating successful placements for youth who are in foster care. In an effort to meet the pressing need for long-term, basic residential services, Thirteenth Place, Inc contracted with State DHR and opened bed space in early 2002 to provide such services for youth ages 8-18. This program has been utilized continually by social services since its inception and, on average, houses six to eight youth in its basic residential program. Youth placed initially in the short-term emergency program are eligible to transition in the basic residential program if family reunification or other placement options are not available.
