Community Service Inc. adopts the following values which will guide the staff and board in strategic planning and the development of programs and policy:
We serve all youth and their families, who we encourage to be active participants in the service process. No youth is denied help, regardless of financial status or ability to pay.
We provide an array of quality services that empower and provide guidance and life skills through advocacy, prevention, intervention, education, and treatment by an ethical, competent, multi-disciplinary staff that are dedicated to meeting clients’ needs.
We design our services to meet the individualized needs of youth and their families and to involve youth and their families throughout the process of service planning.
We strive to offer a continuum of services in our communities that youth and their families receive while remaining within their own home and school environment.
We respect the inherent worth of the individual and provide services to develop skills that enhance lives and promote opportunities for individual and family success.
We understand the importance of involvement in the community in the lives of youth and families and are responsive to the needs of the community, through advocacy, collaboration, and community involvement.
We align our actions with our values and provide our services in a respectful, caring, and ethical manner, which reflects the highest personal and professional standards.
Community Service, Inc. (CSI) was founded in 1958 by Conway County Circuit Judge Audrey Strait. The early organizers felt that the main purpose of CSI was to “combat juvenile delinquency”, but also believed that by serving other segments of the population who were in need, the rate of delinquency would be reduced. In 1959, CSI becomes the first Arkansas agency and possibly the first agency in the nation to provide what is now referred to as “Private Sector Probation” for the Conway County Juvenile Court. This privatization of probation and intake services in Conway County has remained effective through the years and exists even today.
CSI develops the first legal aid program in cooperation with the local bar association in 1964. Local attorneys volunteer their time to represent CSI clients who were unable to afford an attorney for domestic and juvenile cases. All juveniles requesting legal representation received it through this program. In 1965, the Conway County Children’s Fund was established by CSI. This program funded material needs such as clothing and shoes for families, as well as emergency medication at a time when no other service was available to meet these needs.
CSI contracts with the Arkansas Division of Youth Services to provide counseling and casework services in a five county area in 1977. In 1978, a diagnosis and specialized treatment shelter was established. This shelter was later substituted with the Therapeutic Foster Care program. Community Education Program was established in 1979. Such programs include an early prevention program aimed at preventing drug and alcohol abuse, a criminal law education project, Safety with Strangers for children in kindergarten through grade six, a shoplifting program, as well as other educational programs. This program is now referred to as the Prevention Resource Center for CSI.
Both the Petit Jean Youth Foundation and CSI Properties Board were founded in 1986. The Petit Jean Youth Foundation was established to provide an endowment fund for CSI, and CSI Properties Board was founded to purchase and manage buildings and properties utilized by CSI. Also in 1986, CSI was selected to be included in the National Youth 2000 Directory. CSI was the only program in Arkansas to be so honored. This directory was designed to provide various audiences – public officials, foundations, businesses, private industry councils and others with useful, up-to-date information about programs that work!
In 1990, CSI becomes a licensed Child Welfare Agency by the Arkansas Department of Human Services to provide Therapeutic Foster Care. CSI becomes accredited to provide therapeutic foster care for Adolescents with Sexual Adjustment Problems (ASAP) in 1991. CSI is one of only 2 providers in the state of Arkansas to provide this specialized program. In 1997, Day Services Program was established in Conway as an alternative school for 16-17 year old kids who are having difficulty adjusting to public school. This program provides education, life skills, therapy, behavior modification, and recreation. It has since been replicated in Russellville. CSI receives license from the Arkansas Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention to operate a Structured Outpatient Addiction Program for children and adolescents in 1999.
In 2000, CSI becomes a credentialed Medicaid provider under the new Arkansas managed care program for children and adolescents. Previously these Medicaid services could only be provided by community mental health centers. CSI is credentialed to provide the following services: Individual Therapy, Group Therapy, Structured Outpatient Addiction Program, School Based Mental Health Services, Psychoeducational Services, Intensive Casework Management, Targeted Case Management, Therapeutic Foster Care, and School Based Day Treatment Services. CSI received national accreditation by the Council on Accreditation, certification by the Arkansas Division of Mental Health, and approval as an RSPMI (Rehabilitative Services for Persons with Mental Illness) Medicaid Provider by the Division of Mental Services, Arkansas Department of Human Services in 2001.