NCJ Number
94897
Date Published
1981
Length
9 pages
Annotation
The training of interns for the 1977 summer outreach program of Voyage House, a storefront drop-in center for Philadelphia's runaway and homeless youth, had an impact on the development of subsequent staff training.
Abstract
In the summer program, for the first time the focus was on developing a working group, considered more important than any other part of the training. Now all training uses the group as the medium for transmitting content. As it is easier for trainees to attach themselves to a small group than to a large agency, they make a greater personal investment in the program and get more out of the work experience. A second difference in the summer training program was the degree to which systems theory and its application to the dynamics of communities and organizations was emphasized. Using local neighborhood, schools, and Voyage itself, interns learned to see Voyage as a system which could be analyzed and changed. There was no apprenticeship period for the summer interns; independence was forced on them. Consequently, they operated successfully and independently. Now Voyage alternates independent work with training sessions or consultation. With an understanding of why the summer training worked so well, training was modified for all volunteer and paid staff. The results have been positive. The new training approach transfers considerable power and responsibility from supervisor to direct service staff. It facilitates trainees' rising to their own level of competence in the organization.