John Werry completed training in child and adolescent psychiatry at McGill University in Montreal, and has been a world renowned leader in children's mental health. Drawing on a half century of work in Canada, the United States, and his native New Zealand, he shares his reflections and vision for the future in the interview given for this…

Trauma can turn anyone inside out. But when an entire community experiences the same trauma in a matter of minutes, it shatters the rhythm of everyday life and forces a redefinition of "normal." In this article, a school counselor in Newtown who experienced the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School shares her perspectives on the…

In this article, the author recalls her face-to-face meeting with a prison inmate. Paul Jensen is currently serving a life sentence without parole in South Dakota for a crime committed at age 14. In January 1996, Paul was involved in a robbery that went tragically wrong and resulted in the shooting death of taxi cab driver Michael Hare. Three…

Three years before his Nobel Prize, Dr. King shared his vision of non violence in a televised interview published in this article for the first time in print. King and his father both began their lives given the name "Michael" King. During a 1934 trip to Nazi Germany to attned the Baptist World Alliance Conference, the elder R. King…

The pull for family is strong, almost primeval, most likely it is evolutionary, and for those lacking the benefit of family or Family Privilege, the loss of family is painful and profoundly sad. Young people who struggle to cope without stable family connections are profoundly aware of their lack of "Family Privilege." In this article, the author…

In 1955, the first longitudinal study of resilience began on the island of Kauai. This research continues to the present. This article presents an interview with Emmy Werner, the principal investigator. In a series of five books published over a period of thirty years, she demonstrated the remarkable ability of children from difficult backgrounds…

Being an educator is not a job. It is a calling. Educators cannot teach children if they cannot reach children. In this reflection, the author, a RAP trainer, describes the transformation that occurs as youth professionals discover the power of connecting with challenging students. (Contains 1 photo.)

The author reflects on the history of the Circle of Courage model in creating resilient children in a world where virtually all young people can be considered to be at risk. The author stresses that those people in the Reclaiming Youth movement are in the business of humanizing youth work and childcare. They continue to call adults back to the…

This discussion is drawn from the writings of two eminent founders of strength-based approaches to troubled children and adolescents. August Aichhorn is best known for his classic book, "Wayward Youth," and Fritz Redl as co-author of "Children Who Hate". August Aichhorn and Anna Freud mentored a young educational psychologist, Fritz Redl…

One would like to believe that advances in science have resulted in improved outcomes for troubled youth. Trends in treatment have changed dramatically in two decades. Technology to understand the brain and its functions are highly advanced. But the United States is now medicating youth more than any other country. There is growing concern about…

Historically there has been a huge gulf between families and residential programs serving their children. This contradicted classic studies showing that family involvement is the cornerstone for successful outcomes with children in out-of-home care. But in spite of frequent early calls for such inclusion, the family was historically considered to…

A flood of contradictory publications claim widely different methods to be "evidence-based." What then are the key principles for success with challenging youth? Amidst all the confusion, how do we identify powerful universal truths? The answer lies in a "consilience," which involves drawing information from multiple fields of knowledge.…

This article attempts to replicate how Fritz Redl and David Wineman might have handled an "unmade bed" situation with the youngsters at Pioneer House, the treatment program in Detroit that was the subject of their classic work, "The Aggressive Child" (1957) which encompassed two books, "Children Who Hate" and "Controls from Within." There were no…

Developing controls from within requires the helper to be a person of influence able to create conditions of safety in relationship. In order to do so, a focus on the characteristics of adults' relationships with youth is essential. Relational practice offers such a focus. In this article, the author talks about relational practice as a connection…

This Reclaiming Intervention is an excellent example of the notion that life is a watercolor. Tricia Jump's interview demonstrates how a patient, caring adult can bring comfort and hope to a child experiencing some very difficult and painful life events. KC, a ten year old girl, is typical of many children whose home lives are turbulent. In some…