Throughout its more than 90-year history, Boys Town has been praised and recognized for its positive and effective approach to meeting the needs of juvenile offenders. With a model that focuses on accountability, responsibility and rehabilitation, Boys Town’s Treatment Family Homes^SM program delivers a cost-effective alternative to incarceration for juvenile offenders.

Instead of living in a correctional environment that can often reinforce or perpetuate criminal behavior, juveniles at Boys Town are part of a family that teaches them positive behaviors and social skills, and respect for themselves and others.

Research proven

The results of our five-year, follow-up study showed that former Boys Town kids are much like other young adults in their age group. In several significant categories that define good citizenship and serving as a productive member of society, our former residents match or exceed the national norms for young adults. These findings indicate that youth at Boys Town are empowered to maintain significant and lasting changes in their lives long after they leave our treatment.

Download the Boys Town Five-Year Study.

Our 16-year, follow-up study involved participants between 27 and 37 years old who, on average, had left Boys Town’s Treatment Family Homes^SM program 16 years earlier. The purpose was to determine if former Boys Town youth continued to use what they learned in our residential program long after they left.

The results reveal two important findings:

1. As adults, former Boys Town youths are productive, law-abiding citizens who are involved socially, have jobs, value education and contribute to society.
2. The longer the kids stayed in the program, the more positive the long-term outcomes.

Download the Boys Town 16-Year Study.

Case studies

We have reams of data on how Boys Town’s Treatment Family Homes^SM can help juvenile offenders turn their lives around. However, the true and lasting measure of our success lies in the individual stories of how we’ve helped kids overcome painful pasts and build bright futures.

• Jackson — Jackson bounced between multiple foster families and his parental home because of his difficult and aggressive behaviors, including fighting, vandalism, and gang ties... read more›
• Brandon — Brandon didn’t care for rules, and he had no respect for authority. He repeatedly ran away from home, and his family life was disrupted by one crisis after another... read more ›
• Jillian — As an infant, Jillian survived a house fire that claimed the lives of two older siblings. Later, she was abused by her mother’s boyfriend… read more ›
• Josè — Thirteen-year-old Josè has a history of mental health issues that include Conduct Disorder, ADHD and Bipolar Disorder… read more ›
• Ethan — Ethan was placed in foster care after his mother abandoned him when he was a toddler. It would be the first of nine different out-of-home placements… read more ›

Contact Us at nationaladmissions@boystown.org