LAPLACE – The St. John United Way has partnered with Kingsley House to deliver a vital service to students in the St. John Parish public school system who may be on the verge of throwing away their education.

Kingsley House works to provide counseling services to families and children at risk of dropping out of school. As a foundation of the mission of St. John United Way, this service works to improve the educational opportunities for St. John Parish residents in order to improve the overall quality of life and build a stronger community.

Kingsley House provides in-home intensive counseling for at risk youth ages 11-17, as well as their families, and assists with finding additional services that may be needed by the families. In addition, Kingsley House is a vital partner with the St. John School system in providing truancy abatement services.

In order to do this, Kingsley House works with area schools to proactively reduce truancy and promote high school graduation through the provision of support groups, individual counseling and in-home intervention as needed with parents and family. The dropout rate in St. John Parish remains above the state average, proving the necessity of this key service provided by Kingsley House.

In the last nine months alone, Kingsley House provided these vital services to 91 St. John Parish children and their families and helped to reduce the dropout rate. Kingsley House is a national foundation with a large headquarters in New Orleans and a satellite office in LaPlace. Annually, Kingsley House receives $45,575 in funding from the St. John United Way. 

“The funding received by Kingsley House to perform these counseling services allows us to shift at-risk youth away from a path that leads to being a high school dropout and instead moves them in a direction of a future filled with promise and success,” said Dean Torres, Executive Director of the St. John United Way.

Steve Ball, program manager of the Family Life Department at Kingsley House, said The St. John United Way’s continued commitment over the past several years has allowed the organization an opportunity to have a positive impact on individuals and families living in St. John parish through counseling, parenting, anti-bullying and truancy abatement programs.

Families in need of assistance or services can visit the local Kingsley House offices at 429 West Airline Hwy, Suite Q or call Rita Harris, LCSW or Nycole Brown at 985-651-7367.