Klamath Falls, Ore. – The Klamath County Juvenile Department is gearing up for a $10,000,000 expansion of the ‘Youth Inspiration Program’, which targets girls at risk.
Klamath County Juvenile Department Director Dan Golden wants to tear down old dorms and build a new 20,000 square foot facility.
“Basically, a state of the art rehabilitation center,” Golden explained. “That could be a model for future rehabilitation around the whole country.”
The ‘YIP’, or ‘Youth Inspiration Program’ is aimed at helping young women referred through D.H.S. and the Oregon Youth Authority. “This is a population that really is in need of services,” said Golden.
Oregon Tech senior Emily Silva says the program helps give girls confidence in themselves.
“They’re not used to having someone pat them on the back if they do something good,” said Silva. “Even giving them hugs. Shockingly, that’s actually increasing a lot of their confidence.”
Golden says it will cost about $10,000,000 to construct the 20-bed facility and fund the YIP program.
State lawmakers have already granted $1,000,000 to the project.
“We’ve hired architects and engineers,” explained Dan Golden. “They’re in the process now of assessing a plan, putting together the plans, and the kinds of visuals that are going to help me go back to the legislature and show them what we can do.”
Golden says he hopes to have the planning process completed this spring.
Those plans will help fine-tune budget figures to put before state lawmakers in 2019, where they hope to get much of their funding.
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