NCJ Number
87791
Date Published
1980
Length
21 pages
Annotation
The Wagon Train trips operated by the VisionQuest program aim to provide severely troubled adolescents with lessons in community living in which cooperation and a stable social structure are essential.
Abstract
The VisionQuest clients are youths who have multiple referrals to the criminal justice or mental health systems. Most are aggressive youths who are considered hard to place. VisionQuest uses a multidisciplinary staff who deal with these youths in nearly normal settings and try to avoid the need for institutionalization. The Wagon Train trips have operated for the past 4 years. The youths travel like the first pioneers, using covered wagons drawn by mules, and aim to achieve 17 miles per day. Each youth has specific responsibilities which must be fulfilled if the Wagon Train is to reach its daily goal. Each Wagon Train begins in Elfrida, Arizona, where the youths learn to ride, care for their animals, and take responsibility for helping prepare the coming expedition. The Wagon Train provides a unique treatment environment because of the time and distance involved, the new frame of reference it gives to its participants, and the opportunities it provides to develop personal identity and prosocial values. The staff and youths are grouped into tipi 'families' consisting of 8 to 12 youths and 4 to 6 staff per family. Each family is responsible for a wagon, mule team, riding stock, harness, tack, and equipment. Rotation of chores, opportunities to earn positions such as scout and teamster, responsibility for livestock, and remedial education are all important program components, which take place in a tightly structured daily routine beginning at 4:30 a.m. and usually ending at 7 p.m. Descriptions of program components and the daily activities are included.