Hannah was in her freshman year at college when things around her

began to crumble.

A relationship ended terribly and forced her to find a place to live.

Then, a friend who’d agreed to take her in unexpectedly changed her

mind. Now she had no place to go and no options.

She was working in a program at her college to help underprivileged

students. One of the staff members told her about Youth Villages’

transitional living program. Mindy Bowman became her TL specialist.

“I didn’t know what to expect when we met,” Hannah said. “I just sat

and listened.”

Mindy, who’s been a TL specialist for nearly a year, said Hannah was

one of her first youth to help.

“She is amazing,” Mindy said. “We would sit together and talk and

she was willing to open up about what was going on. She’d already

accomplished a lot before I began working with her, but at the time we

met, she was taking on more than she could handle.”

Hannah left her mother’s home at 12 and went to live with her

grandmother, then lived with her aunt and uncle. After moving, she thrived

in school. Then her mother, who abused drugs and alcohol, passed away.

Living off campus while in college, she became stressed about money.

“Then my relationship went bad and I had to find a place to live,” she said.

She applied and became a YV scholar, a program where TL participants

THROUGH TL, HANNAH’S ABLE TO KEEP THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE

Hannah, right, with Youth Villages Clinical Supervisor Mindy Bowman

Continued on next page

KEY INDICATORS

93%

87%

79%

www.YouthVillages.org

200 175 225 Youth Villages

helps more than

600 youth in the

TL program

every day.

805 Number of youth helped by TL

program so far this fiscal year

71%

TRANSITIONAL LIVINGJuly to September 2014 Tennessee ReportFirst Quarter of Fiscal Year 2015

IN SCHOOL OR GRADUATED

EMPLOYED OR SEEKING EMPLOYMENT

LIVING WITH FAMILYOR INDEPENDENTLY

NO INVOLVEMENT WITH THE LAW

Numbers below reflect first-quarter status of youth

currently in the transitional living program.

Founded in 1986, Youth Villages is a leading national nonprofit dedicated to

providing the most effective local solutions to help emotionally and behaviorally

troubled children and their families live successfully. We help more than 22,000

children and families each year from more than 20 states and Washington, D.C.

Youth Villages’ Evidentiary Family Restoration™ approach involves intensive work

with the child and family, a focus on measuring outcomes, keeping children in the

community whenever safely possible, and providing unprecedented accountability

to families and funders.

TO MAKE A REFERRAL

Contact the nearest Youth Villages office and ask to make a referral to the TL program. You may also contact the nearest

Department of Children’s Services office and ask to speak to the local independent living specialist about TL services.

receive extra support for college provided they

maintain academic and community service

requirements. Mindy’s role was special because

setbacks affected Hannah more severely. Hannah

was very driven to succeed in school, and Mindy

helped her maintain perspective.

“Since I was little I kept the same dream,”

Hannah said. “I wanted to be the first in my family to

graduate high school with honors and go to college.”

Hannah heaped the pressure on herself.

“At times we had difficulty keeping her spirits

up,” Mindy said. “She’s a high achiever and needs

guidance on what she’s doing, to take a step back

and say, ‘Let’s get back on track toward our goals.’”

In addition, Hannah learned about healthy

relationships while seeking a more stable day-to-day

life. Her relationship with Mindy fluctuates between

mentor and friend, but everything is geared toward

Hannah reaching her academic and professional

goals. Now 20, Hannah entered the TL program later

than many, but she said it was the right time.

“I was more receptive to being helped than I

would have been earlier,” she said. “I was so broken

and ready for help when Mindy came into the

picture. I don’t think I would’ve done that if it had

been earlier.”

In some ways, setbacks affected Hannah more — Mindy kept her motivated

continued from previous page

All contents ©2015 by Youth Villages, Inc.

with all rights reserved. Youth Villages is accredited by the Joint Commission.

www.youthvillages.org

“OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH YOUTH VILLAGES IS EXTREMELY VALUABLE. YOUTH VILLAGES STRIVES TO ASSIST EVERY YOUNG ADULT THAT IS REFERRED TO THE TRANSITIONAL LIVING PROGRAM. DCS AND YV HAVE A COMMITMENT TO ENSURE THAT YOUNG ADULTS ARE PROVIDED THE ASSISTANCE THEY NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL AFTER 18, EVEN IF THEY DON’T ACCEPT THE EXTENSION OF FOSTER CARE SERVICES. WITHOUT THESE SERVICES, WE WOULD HAVE A SERVICE GAP AND MORE YOUNG ADULTS STRUGGLING TO TRANSITION TO ADULTHOOD — POSSIBLY COSTING THE STATE MORE MONEY IN LOST WAGES, INCARCERATION, HOMELESSNESS AND GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE.”

Tennessee DCS Independent Living

Youth Engagement Leader Ginger Harris

The first results from a randomized study of

Youth Villages’ transitional living services point

toward a valid evaluation of the program, said

Michelle Manno, research associate with MDRC,

the national social research agency conducting the

study.

“Our report shows that the transitional living

program in Tennessee has been implemented

as we would have expected,” she said. MDRC’s

implementation and participation findings are

published in a 124-page report, Moving Into

Adulthood.

The first impact results from the study should be available in mid-2015.

Those results will show if the program is effective as compared to usual

services for former foster children in Tennessee.

The program helps youth who were formerly in foster care or the juvenile

justice system or who otherwise find themselves unprepared for adult life

and need help making the transition to adulthood.

TL STUDY CONCLUDES WITH FAVORABLE OUTLOOK

moving into adulthood

IMPLEMENTATION

FINDINGS FROM

THE YOUTH VILLAGES

TRANSITIONAL LIVING

EVALUATION

Michelle MannoErin JacobsJulianna AlsonMelanie Skemer

March 2014