Scott County Partners for Youth Council, Inc.
History
 
History - how SCPY came to be and the organizational process
1988
     Making the Grade:  A Report of American Youth town meeting was held in Scott City.  80 people spent a day identifying the resources available and the areas that needed improvement.  The participants identified parenting, law enforcement, and networking as major issues for Scott County youth.  Committees were then formed to deal with the three issues.
     The law enforcement committee worked with the police force to do presentations for organizations and the schools to let the public know what they do and the issues they face.  The committee also promoted having individuals ride with a police officer for an evening.  The committee let the police know they are supported in enforcing the law.  The committee functioned for about two years.
     The parenting committee struggled and didn't get any new activities going.
 
       The networking committee formed an information youth council.   In the beginning nine community members met to share what was going on with youth.  The groups included Extension, USD #466, Head Start, Health Department, Area mental Health, District Court Judge and Police.  The youth council continued to meet and expanded the number of people attending until 1996.  Although the council was not formally organized it was recognized state-wide as a planning council worked with The Corporation for Change.  (A committee formed by legislature to deal with Youth at Risk issues)
   
  1994
       The school, as a result of a grant, formed the Safe Drug Free Schools Council.  Ann Schumacher, High School Social Worker, led the Council.  Jim and Hannah Barrett, Vicki Dirks and Betty LaToush were part of the Council and all went through Baseline Training.
       It soon became apparent that many of the same people were involved in the youth council and the Safe & Drug Free Schools Council and that we had similar objectives.  Discussion began to consider combining the two groups.  The youth council decided to apply for a Barriers Grant available from The Corporation for Change to determine what the barriers were for the different agencies working together first, and then use the information for determining if the two Councils wanted to form one group.
       We received the $2,000 grant and Ann Schumacher, School Social Worker and leader for the Safe & Drug Free Council, was hired to conduct a survey of all the youth serving agencies in the county to determine existing barriers to services for children and families.  The surveys showed that confidentiality was the greatest barrier.  Other barriers mentioned were time, turn or boundary issues, unclear and unrealistic expectations of each other, and knowledge of what each group or agency does.
       A joint meeting of the youth council and The Safe & Drug Free Schools Council was called for the purpose of presenting the results of the barriers grant.  Discussion took place and it was unanimously voted to combine the two councils.