GENERAL AGENCY DESCRIPTION

Tri-County Youth Services Bureau, Inc. (TCYSB) is one of 19 Youth Services Bureaus (YSBs) established in 1971 as community-based nonresidential entities to provide delinquency prevention, youth suicide prevention, drug and alcohol prevention, and youth development services to youth and their families.  Youth Services Bureaus work to ameliorate conditions that breed delinquency, youth suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, and family disruption.

Each Youth Services Bureau functions as an advocate for the needs of youth and families.  They operate under the authority of Article 83C, #2-122, Annotated Code of Maryland, Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) 16.04.01, and a Memorandum of Agreement between the Department of Juvenile Services and the Sub cabinet for Children’s Services.

Funding is a shared responsibility of the Governor’s Office for Children and local governmental entities (Board of County Commissioners).

TCYSB is a non-profit 501©3 organization serving the children, youth, and families of Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties.  Services are focused on the prevention of delinquency, abuse, violence, substance abuse, suicide, and other devastating outcomes for youth and their families.

TCYSB is a member of the Maryland Association of Youth Services Bureaus (MAYSB) and the Maryland Association of Non Profit Organizations (MANO).

MISSION

The mission of Tri-County Youth Services Bureau is to provide a respectful and compassionate atmosphere for youth and their families in Southern Maryland to learn through educational and counseling services how to communicate more creatively and how to more effectively understand and promote values, which are unique to each family.

BELIEFS

Tri-County Youth Services Bureau believes that:

• Opportunities must be provided for all families to grow and become more self-sufficient.
• A highly skilled and diverse staff is vital to meet the needs of a diverse      population.
• All families should have equal access to educational and mental health services.
• Effective parenting is crucial to children’s success.
• Interagency collaboration is very important.
• All individuals have strengths and deserve dignity and respect.

VISION

Tri-County Youth Services Bureau is a model agency with a highly qualified, diverse staff and Board of Directors, dedicated to providing contemporary, accessible services to youth and families in Southern Maryland, empowering families to define and achieve their goals more effectively.

We are a best practices, outcome focused agency with a commitment to state of the art, empirically grounded interventions.

The agency utilizes continuous quality improvement to assure that those whom we serve are getting the best, most effective services in the field.  All programs have logic models, defined intervention outcomes and specific measurements to assure effective implementation and results.

HONORS, AWARDS, AND RECOGNITION

Tri-County Youth Services Bureau has a distinguished history of service and recognition, including awards that both the Bureau and professional staff have received over the years.

• The “President’s Flag” and “Point of Light” Awards
• Distinguished Service Award – the Children’s Council
• Distinguished Children’s Service Award – the Children’s Council
• Outstanding Community Services Award – Charles County Mental Health Association
• Good Neighbor Award – ARC of Southern Maryland
• Southern Maryland Social Worker of the Year
• Advocate of the Year – Maryland Association of Counseling and Development
• Outstanding Service Award – Child Welfare Day, St. Mary’s County