Published: June 10, 2009 12:40 am      

HOMICIDE: State suspends Avenue House operating certificate

The Avenue House at 437 East Ave. where Monday’s homicide took place had its operating certificate suspended Tuesday. The few remaining youth were moved to another location, according to a spokeswoman for the state agency that regulates such youth facilities.

“In our role of oversight, we will be investigating,” said Pat Cantiello, spokeswoman for the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. She said the suspension applied only to the East Avenue location.

The Avenue House is a six-bed group home for teenage boys, operated by Wyndham Lawn Home for Children and New Directions Youth and Family Services. Cantiello said the staffing level there was appropriate, according to state regulations.

New Directions is a 501(c)3 non-profit agency that helps children with emotional and behavioral problems, along with their families. In operation since 1969, the goal of the Avenue House is to help young men prepare for their future and learn to live within a community.

New Directions has more than 25 programs and services aiding residents throughout New York state, including residential care and treatment programs, foster care, group homes, a home for parenting teens, children’s mental health services, supervised independent living and non-secure detention.

Among the services provided while living at Avenue House is individual and family therapy with a social worker and access to community-based drug and alcohol counseling. There is also full-service medical and dental care. The house also can assist in job placement through the Lockport School District’s job coordinator.

Like the other group homes at New Directions, the Avenue House uses “normative culture,” which means everything residents are taught to do is based on respect, responsibility, safety and setting goals. The program’s Web site said the culture uses peer pressure in a positive way, among both the residents and staff, to create shared expectations regarding attitudes and behavior. Expected attitudes and behaviors are called “norms.” When someone breaks a norm, the people around them are expected to point it out in a helpful manner.

Independent living skills are an important focus of the program, because some youth may not be returning home after discharge. After completion of the program, the youth will be ready to handle the challenge of living independently, said the program’s Web site, www.ndyfs.org.

All those referred to the Avenue House program must be working on their educational or employment goals. They also must be prepared to live in an all group setting and be an active participant in the community.

Contact reporter Joe Olenick at 439-9222, ext. 6241.

Editor Karen Keefe also contributed to this report.