House Community
Budget Issue Requests - Tracking Id #1460 Children's Group Ranch |
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Requester: |
Dr. Jerry Feulner |
Organization: |
Center for Drug Free Living, Inc. |
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Project Title: |
Children's Group Ranch |
Date Submitted: |
01/26/2000 10:24:31 AM |
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District Member: |
Bill Sublette |
Service Area: |
Regional |
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Counties Affected: |
Brevard, Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Sumter |
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Recipient: |
Center for Drug Free Living, Inc. |
Contact: |
Steve Hill |
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205 South Eola Drive |
Contact Phone: |
(850) 656-3100 |
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Orlando 32801 |
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Project Description: |
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The Center for Drug Free Living is a comprehensive community-based substance abuse prevention, intervention and treatment, 501(c)(3) agency that has served the needs of Central Florida for 28 years. It is licensed by the Department of Children and Families and accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitative Facilities. It has a longstanging history of providing innovative programs designed to meet the changing needs of the Central Florida community, and currently serves more than 1,000 children and adolescents in a variety of different programs helping children and youth overcome obstacles that prevent them from becoming happy, healthy and productive citizens. This proposal requests one time funding for the purchase of a ranch (Fiddler's Green Ranch) located in the Ocala National Forest, Altoona, Florida, for the purpose of establishing a 30 bed residential program for male and female children up to the age of 18 who need a safe and caring environment and who have special needs such as behavioral and emotional problems associated with home removal due to abuse and neglect. The rance consists of 30.86 wooded and cleared acres, office, kitchen, 19 bedrooms and bathrooms, residential manager 2 bedroom mobile home, screened swimming pool, tack room, barn with four stalls, stable with ten stalls, one large covered arena and one open arena. The Residents of the Ranch will be referred by the Department of Children and Families foster care programs in DCF District 7 (Brevard, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties) and DCF District 13 (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion and Sumter counties). Districts 7 and 13 have already made preliminary commitments to fund the operation of the program. |
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Services Provided/Benefit to State: |
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The services offered by the Center will provide: a safe and nuturing environment; assessment services; counseling services to overcome the trauma of familial separation and the potentially lasting negative effects of abuse and neglect; appropriate linkages to other services deemed appropriate during assessment; and basic skills development. The children will attend the Lake County public schools, and will receive, in addition to their basic needs (ie., food, shelter, clothing), recreational and educational opportunities (ie., organized sports and tutoring), individual and group counseling, training in self-esteem, team builing skills, and access to the faith community of their choice. The Ranch will be operated in a home like manner and will support therapeutic services, encourage educational development, provide continuous reinforcement of constructive, responsible behavior and the reunification of families. The State, and in particular Central Florida, is in a state of emergency with regard to protective services and foster care for children. The heighten awareness of child abuse as a result of the dealth of Kayla McKean in Clermont, Florida, and the subsequent passage of the Kayla McKean Child Protection Act in 1999 has resulted in a more sensitive and responsive child protection system and an increase in the number of calls to the abuse hotline. Unfortunately, the system in ill equipped to deal with the caseloads and the emergency and foster care needs of abused and neglected children. In District 7, the number of children in foster care has increased by 700 since May 1999, and in District 13, the number of children placed in foster care increased by more than 400% during 1999. The purchase of the proposed facility and the availability of the proposed services will be a timely improvement to the foster care resources in the Central Florida area. |
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Measurable Outcome Anticipated: |
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Reduction in the number of children who need, but do not have, out of home placement available. Improved professional treatment and referral services for abused and neglected children. Improved family reunification. Compliance with all of the DCF performance measures established for the children and ADM programs of the Department of Children and Families. |
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Amount requested from the State for this project this year: |
$800,000 |
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Total cost of the project: |
$800,000 |
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Request has been made to fund: |
Unknown |
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Is there Local Government or Private match for this request? |
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No |
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Was this project previously funded by the State? |
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No |
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Is future-year funding likely to be requested? |
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Unknown |
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Was this project included in an Agency's Budget Request? |
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No |
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Was this project included in the Governor's Recommended Budget? |
No |
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Is there a documented need for this project? |
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Yes |
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Documentation: |
Numerous studies, investigations, Governor's budget have indicated the need for expanded foster care |
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Was this project request heard before a publicly noticed meeting of a body of elected officials (municipal, county, or state)? |
No |
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