Harm does not occur in a vacuum, and harm caused by an individual is very rarely the first time they have witnessed or felt harm.  People learn through exposure and example, and often scenes of harm or violence are threaded into the development of children through first hand experience.  Unfortunately, these  unanswered and unaddressed issues have the potential for escalation, and potential incarceration.  

 

Kid C.A.T. is a prison program created by and for youth offenders to uncover and process the conditions that lead to their circumstance.  The story of Kid C.A.T. did not start in prison -- it started with the experienced harms, traumas, and lack of answers  -- and in the sentencing that could have been avoided if as children many of our youth offenders had the support and tools  they needed in order resolve their external and internal conflicts.  Built from the inside out, Kid C.A.T. first sought to facilitate a program based on the missing needs and unanswered questions many of our members had in common.  Through the principles of accountability and restoration,  Kid C.A.T.’s  ‘The First Step’ curriculum gives its members the space, language, tools, support and capacity to grow beyond their station in life.

 

Over time Kid C.A.T. has seen many of its members leave the correctional system and go on to become functionally integrated and beloved members of their community.  Currently, we are working to support these transitions, and find ways for our members to be resources to the youth today who are quietly struggling with the same issues and conditions our members know all too well.