Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 parents who feel they or their children need a boost to achieve their goals and success can get help reaching their objectives from professionals at the new Wraparound Center.
Bridget Dotson, the Wraparound Center’s director, said there are people available to help in a variety of areas. If one of the center’s partners is not the appropriate specialist, she said she or her staff will find the proper fit elsewhere.
“When a person feels there are barriers to what they want to achieve, we help them determine what that barrier is,” Dotson said. “It may have to do with an experience they’ve had which creates a fear or apprehension which is stopping them.”
The Wraparound Center opened July 15 on the lower level of District 60’s new administration building at the northwest corner of Washington and Genesee streets in downtown Waukegan, offering counseling and support in a variety of areas.
Funded primarily by a pair of grants from the state totaling $3.3 million, Dotson said the center is open by appointment only as the facility and its permanent resident community partners begin to see people.
Individuals, family members or District 60 student support staff can make a referral by completing an online request. Dotson said center personnel will review it within two business days to see if needs can be met by the Wraparound Center. Services are free.
Located in the lower level of the six-story former Midwest Bank building, Nick Alatzakis, the district’s communications director, said the building will also be the home of some administrative offices now housed at Lincoln Center and other departments.
Open to district students and their families, Alatzakis said it is also available to members of the Waukegan community. Services are offered in both English and Spanish.
Consisting of seven suites designed for community partners offering a variety of services, as well as general areas for both staff and partners, Dotson said four are already in use by A Safe Place and Community Youth Network. Other partners are being sought.
Offering help for general mental health, social-emotional needs and substance abuse, she said the Community Youth Network occupies one suite for general use, and another specifically for counseling on scheduled days.
A Safe Place occupies a suite to aid those dealing with domestic violence or sexual abuse issues. Dotson said the organization also has a second room for counseling on specific days for individuals dealing with those issues.
Each suite contains a desk with chairs for the counselor or another appropriate person, an area with a couch and soft seating if it meets a particular need, and a round table with chairs around it.
“The suites are set up to be a service-delivery model, including ones that are family-led,” Dotson said. “There is no head at the table, so there is a collaborative effort.”
Operating the Wraparound Center with a “slow roll-out,” she said eventually both legal aid and juvenile justice services will also be offered. She is talking to potential community partners to fill those roles.
“I’m in conversations with organizations to provide legal services for no fee,” Dotson said. “We are networking with them to determine if the partnership is a fit.”
Should the legal services provider not possess the expertise in the area of law needed, she said she and her staff will try to find an appropriate match for the individual. The same is true for other services a person may need.
Juvenile justice services are designed to help youth who are in the criminal justice system. Dotson said counselors will also work with young people to help them make decisions which will ensure they do not need to deal with police or criminal lawyers.
“We want to provide a basis for proper decision-making so they never cross over into the criminal justice system,” she said.
Though the Wraparound Center is operating, work is continuing on the completion of the renovation of the main floor and the upper levels of the building. Alatzakis said the rest of the renovation will be finished by the fall.
Along with many of the administrators and staff currently housed at the Lincoln Center administration building, Alatzakis said public-facing departments like the welcome center, registration and transportation will be located on the entry-level.
