Shelter offers short-term care for youth who are out of their homes due to a crisis, concern about the safety or stability of their home or who are awaiting a longer-term placement. The Shirley Miller Attention Home, located in Missoula, is an eight-bed coeducational group home that serves this purpose.
The primary goal of the home is to keep youth stable and safe until they can be placed in an appropriate, more permanent setting, with an average length of stay of three weeks.
Our Approach
- Ensure safety of the youth, and those around him or her, as the first priority
- Assist in developing and implementing case plans of 30 days or less, with the option to extend if necessary
- Be an alternative to detention and help resolve crisis for the youth
- Use a strength-based approach to working with these youth
- Provide timely evaluations of these young people to assist in their case planning
- Offer a structured daily program that teaches youth social skills, encourages positive behavior, advocates for personal responsibility, and helps them find strength in themselves
- Access community services for youth in our care, such as education, employment, recreation, culture, therapy and health care
- Be culturally competent and focus on cultural identity by developing individual identity goals in case plans
- Have a full-time Program Director who’s responsible for leading and supporting the program and staff and managing individual case plans
- Support a line staff who are caring, well trained and talented and work in a 1:4 staff-to-youth ratio with 24-hour awake supervision
- Provide a Home Manager who manages the day-to-day functioning of the home to ensure a home-like environment
Ages Served
We are licensed to accept youth ages 10 to 17
Criteria for Admission
We accept youth who:
- Cannot return home or remain in a placement due to an emotional crisis, family conflict, lack of supervision, abuse or neglect issues, poor behavior, assessment needs, minor offenses or chemical or alcohol abuse
- Are at risk of being on the streets
- Need protection while Child Welfare investigates abuse
We accept referrals from agencies, family members or even the youngsters themselves, or if the youth qualifies for shelter care under the Federal Runaway Basic Center Program. Youth must be covered by health insurance.
Youngsters are not appropriate for our program if they present a significant threat to themselves, others in the community, or whose needs are greater than what we can provide in the setting
Contact for a referral or further information:
Dan Corradini
Director of Shelter Care
dcorradini@youthhomesmt.org
(406) 541-1653
