Utah Youth Village teaches at-risk youth to survive and thrive

Utah Youth Village teaches at-risk youth to survive and thrive

(Eric Betts/KSL TV)


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RIVERTON — For more than 40 years, a program called Utah Youth Village has been helping troubled children or at-risk youth to learn the choices and behaviors they need to survive and thrive.

Family teachers are living examples to these youth in state custody so they can one day go back home.

Tyler and Nicole Carney gently guide and give instructions to the boys as they work around the kitchen.

“Remember the cups go three deep,” Tyler tells one boy.

The boys are putting away the utensils, stacking the cups and wiping down the table. They earn points each day for these and other chores.

“Everything they do is their choice. Whether it’s positive or negative, they earn positive or negative consequences. And we keep track of that through points,” said Tyler.

The Carneys are the family teachers for up to six boys, all living together in a large, clean, welcoming home in a regular Riverton neighborhood.

“We always call ourselves a family,” said Nicole Carney.

And they run everything like they are a family, with chores, appointments and study time.

The boys may be here for nine months or a year, or less, depending on what they need.


You can see it. They are happier when they have structure, they feel safe.

–Alex Johnson


“A lot have ADD or ADHD, or what’s called ODD or oppositional defiance disorder. Some have PTSD,” explained Tyler.

The Carneys sleep here and provide around-the-clock treatment. Other family teachers from Utah Youth Village, like Alex Johnson, come during the week as well.

“We all teach the children the behaviors they need to go to a lower level of care,” said Johnson, an associate family teacher.

He says the goal is to get the boys the right skills so they can successfully go back to their own families, be adopted or be in long-term foster care. The Youth Village representatives work toward that, day-in and day-out, teaching their evidenced-based and proven family model.

Teri Greeff, the coordinator of group homes for Utah Youth Village, says the youth are referred to the program from state custody. After the group home setting, 90 percent are able to go to a lower level of care.

“You can see it. They are happier when they have structure, they feel safe,” said Johnson.

Utah Youth Village teaches at-risk youth to survive and thrive
Photo: Eric Betts/KSL

After their chores were done, the boys moved outside to shoot hoops, laughing and running and calling out to Tyler to pass them the ball.

As he played, Tyler said he loves this part of the job. They have also been camping, snowboarding, swimming, and they go out to eat. They have three family nights a month involving all the boys.

The Carneys say they see these boys’ futures being changed before their eyes, even though this job is difficult and challenging.

“It’s the little things that make the biggest difference,” said Nicole.

“We had one guy who wouldn’t acknowledge us at first, wouldn’t look at us or listen to us. But when he left, he was in tears over what we had been able to accomplish,” said Tyler, himself near tears as he remembered. “He put his head on my shoulder and thanked me. That was nice.”

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