Expanding Successful Interventions for Children with Sexual Behavior Problems in the Kansas City Metro

For this project, the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA) will expand its treatment program for Youth with Sexual Behavior Problems (YSBP), treatment for adolescent sex offenders, and victim services in Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri. MOCSA serves as the only rape crisis center for the six-county, bi-state Kansas City region. The program provides both victim services for survivors of sexual abuse and assault, as well as effective treatment for Youth with Sexual Behavior Problems using the University of Oklahoma Problematic Sexual Behavior Cognitive Behavioral Therapy protocol (OU-PSB-CBT). MOCSA leads the response to sexual violence in the region, and the successful YSBP multidisciplinary team in Jackson County, Missouri (where Kansas City is centered) is recognized as a forerunner in YSBP case coordination. MOCSA also provides 24-hour crisis line support, victim advocacy, and counseling for victims and their non-offending family members. Through this expansion, MOCSA will establish a new Clay County Outreach Site that will enhance and expand intervention for children with sexual behavior problems and adolescent sex offenders. Clay and Platte Counties make up the Kansas City Northland, with a wide range of urban, rural, and Qualified Opportunity Zone areas. The region's Child Advocacy Center has indicated a need for the expanded programming, and Clay-Platte constitutes MOCSA's second-highest area of demand for service in Missouri, after Jackson County, where they currently provide YSBP services. This project will also enhance treatment and referrals for victims and nonoffending family members, leveraging MOCSA's existing victim services to respond to increased referrals from Northland YSBP families. MOCSA will work with its existing Clay-Platte partners to convene Multidisciplinary Teams to respond collaboratively to cases, and to develop an assessment of system resources for offending youth, victims, and caregivers. The target populations for this project include youth ages 6-14 for YSBP, adolescents up to age 17, victims of youth-perpetrated sexual violence, and non-offending family members, parents, and caregivers. MOCSA expects this program to serve 140 individuals during the grant period. This includes 40 youth with sexual behavior problems, 40 child victims, and 60 parents/caregivers. Overall, MOCSA envisions Clay-Platte communities where proven strategies reduce the perpetration of sexual violence among youth, and victims and families have the resources they need. This project will make that vision a reality, expanding its successful interventions and expertise to prevent sexual reoffending, improve family and system responses, and bolster protective factors among youth in our Kansas City Northland communities.