Wisconsin Lutheran Child & Family Services (WLCFS, dba Christian Family Solutions) has been healing and helping people in need through the ministry of Jesus Christ since 1965. WLCFS collaborates with 17 Milwaukee schools, students, their families, and mental health providers.
Primary Focus Area: Urban in-school counseling and STRONG day-treatment programs
Requesting Funding for "Youth Counseling Initiative"
Program Budget: $2,736,436
Operating Budget: $13,503,887
Lutheran Affiliation: WELS
Programs: The Youth Counseling Initiative provides trauma-informed and culturally sensitive therapy to children living in Milwaukee’s underserved neighborhoods. Children served are commonly diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorders, mood disorders, impulse-control problems, and trauma, and they exhibit behaviors that pose harm to themselves and others. By offering services at schools and other convenient locations within the city, this program makes mental health treatment accessible to students and their families.
WLCFS has a formal partnership with ten schools in Milwaukee where onsite outpatient care is offered to students. It also operates the STRONG day treatment program for students who need more intensive intervention. This early intervention has positive ripple effects in the community, as children are able to stay in school and live out their God-given purpose in their families and communities.
Who Is Served: The Youth Counseling Initiative serves youth ages 4 to 18 living in and around the Milwaukee area. WLCFS expects to serve 725 children in the next year with mental health services through its work with 17 Christian schools in the Greater Milwaukee area.
The WI Dept. of Health Services estimates that more than 30,000 youth in the area struggle with mental illness. Students living in the neighborhoods served by WLCFS schools experience violence, substance use, abuse, and social unrest on a daily basis. Many of these children struggle with mental health disorders due to "Adverse Childhood Experiences" they have suffered at home or from violence in their neighborhood, but they have few options for treatment.
Location: W175 N11120 Stonewood Drive, Germantown, WI 53022
Website: https://christianfamilysolutions.org