Gotta Love Those Teens! Why do we focus on teens?
First, a local adolescent judge asked us to. He was concerned that the kids in state custody were growing up to be just like their parents. If we didn’t give them a foundation for happiness and success in life while they were teens, they might never get it. Second, teens are in a developmental stage wherein they differentiate between the values expressed in their home environment versus values they choose on their own. C2 is designed to provide an opportunity to examine their assimilated values and compare them with good character. Third, our society’s academic, judicial, and social service structures allow us to provide opportunities to be involved in character education for teen. Why did we write C2 specifically for at-risk teens? How does C2 work with ‘good kids?’ When the judge asked for a character training curriculum, we checked out the others on the market. Our ‘panel of experts’ [actual at-risk teens] judged them as “lame” [Translation: Uninteresting, uninspiring, and not ‘cool’]. Our opinion was that they were designed for the kids who needed them least: The kids who already had high levels of character strength. We believed that if we designed the training to be highly interesting, interactive, and challenging, it would appeal not only to at-risk teens but to all teens. Our pilot groups proved this accurate. Our high-functioning adolescents [honor roll students] reported similar interest in and transformation from their experience with C2. Download a PDF Snapshot of C2 What types of organizations are using C2 now? Secondary Education: middle, junior high, and senior high schools, alternative schools, PTO’s and PTA’s, home school organizations Juvenile Justice: state youth services, departments of family and children’s services, diversion and remediation programs, and private contractors of youth services Mental health therapists: in-patient units, out-patient services Residential Treatment Centers: group homes, foster care programs | 
