Second Chance Ranch is an authentic experience designed to help youth find themselves and families discover

their children — restoring the individual and reunifying the individual and family.

Based on a group home model, all residents live in a “bunk house” with other youth and their live-in house parents.  To foster consistency, trust and relationship, each bunk house is assigned one set of house parents — creating the most stable home-like environment possible.  In addition, each bunk house has an assigned set of relief house parents.  For many of the youth, “home” has been a chaotic, uncertain place.  At Second Chance Ranch our youth not only know who their caregiver is, but are assured their caregiver will still be there tomorrow.  This team approach also extends to our support staff with each bunk house being assigned a social worker/therapist, case manager, and volunteer mentor.  This staff forms the core clinical team working with the youth and family.

Each bunk house family is encouraged to develop its own identity.  Learning to co-exist with  bunk mates, house parents, ranch hands, counselors, social workers, workmen, teachers, and other staff as a team to accomplish tasks and goals are life lessons in how to resolve interpersonal conflicts at home, school, and through out life. In addition, a sense of community is developed as the bunk house residents have “town hall” meetings to identify group goals to support local communities through service projects.

Learning new skills, the youth also learn new attitudes. The philosophy of Second Chance Ranch is that day-to-day activities (i.e., chores, recreation, school, peer interactions, “family” interactions, etc.) are a means of affecting change in a young person’s life by teaching discipline, personal worth, confidence, service, respect, dignity, integrity, and a strong work ethic. At Second Chance Ranch the youth are taught that challenges are no longer obstacles, but instead stepping stones to achievement.

Second Chance Ranch maintains that working with the family is a vital aspect of working with abused, neglected, and at-risk youth. Services for the family include: weekly intensive family therapy, limited case management for parents/guardians, referral services, family weekends, and structured home visits with clinical support. Most youth want to return to their families and their families want them home. However, many youth cycle in and out of programs and facilities with few resources dedicated to solving crisis in the family. Identifying, engaging and working with the family system is the cornerstone of our clinical program and critical in reducing recidivism.

Although our focus is to help restore families, we recognize that some children will never be able to return home. Second Chance Ranch hopes to provide a permanent home for the children for whom parental rights have been terminated and adoption is not a viable option. By virtue of needing an out-of-home placement, all residents of Second Chance Ranch are considered viable candidates for outpatient mental health and supportive services. The scope of services required varies based on the individualized needs of each resident. In addition to therapeutic group home living, available services are: individual therapy, group therapy, behavior management, case management, residential activities, educational/tutoring labs, social skills training, spiritual counsel, and medication management.

Second Chance Ranch is actively seeking to partner with a variety of agencies and community service organizations to better connect the youth we serve with their families and their families with the communities in which they live. Developing community-based coalitions improves our ability to address systemic issues affecting the family.

Second Chance Ranch has access to one of the top public school districts in the state. The school district boasts student achievement scores surpassing state averages. It offers several different learning environments; each student is assessed to determine which learning environment would best meet the needs of that individual student. Second Chance Ranch maintains a close working relationship with the school district, providing each student with the level of support he or she needs to achieve academic success.

Second Chance Ranch is a licensed residential child care facility through the Arkansas Department of Human Services. Current capacity is 27 youth in residential group homes. Age ranges from 10 to 18 years old; however, Second Chance Ranch will always group youth together by developmental appropriateness.

When the youth leaves Second Chance Ranch, our staff will actively coordinate aftercare services with our patient providers, school, courts, and others to ensure a smooth transition back to home, school, and the community.

Blending the best of the old and the best of the new, Second Chance Ranch provides a caring home for youth facing difficult situations and choices.

Turning Obstacles Into Opportunities