ARTHUR JACKSON MIDNIGHT BASKETBALL OF FLORIDA

“More Than Just a Game.”

Arthur Jackson Midnight Basketball of Florida is a Prevention Program that was started in 1991. The program was designed by The Center For Drug-Free Living, Inc. and The City of Orlando to provide youth with positive, alternative late night activities. Goals of Midnight Basketball include strengthening relations between law enforcement and local youth, improving self-esteem of youth, enhancing their interpersonal skills and providing youth with mentors who will have a positive role in their lives. Midnight Basketball has grown to serve thousands of children and their families in Central Florida .

Midnight Basketball has grown from four to eighteen sites in three counties with over 1500 participants who receive educational and drug prevention presentations on a weekly basis. The program offers seasonal tournaments, a boys' and girls' high school summer league, basketball camps sponsored by Darrell Armstrong, the FHSAA sanctioned Midnight Basketball Invitational, Friday and Saturday night games year-round, and a scholarship program.

Please call for times as each site varies.
* Friday nights
**Saturday nights
***Friday & Saturday nights

Sites may be closed due to special events and holidays as determined by Midnight Basketball and facilities.

The Back on Track program is a partnership between Orange County Public Schools and The Center for students who have received a Level 4 discipline infraction (for substance use and /or possession of paraphernalia). Students and families are provided the opportunity to participate in Back on Track in lieu of students’ expulsion.

An initial psychosocial assessment is completed with the student and parents to gather information to maximize student’s participation in groups. A series of 3 psycho-educational sessions with the student and at least one parent or guardian addresses the topics of drug use and abuse, communication and problem solving.

The Holden Heights Empowerment Project (HHEP) is an implementation of a CSAP-approved prevention program targeting youth, ages 12-17, and their families. The project's goal will be to enhance the number and quality of effective prevention programs in the target community taking into consideration the structures and the environment in which youth behavior changes need to occur and the context that supports behavior change. The anticipated outcomes, i.e., increased knowledge of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use and its impact on African-American families and communities; increased family bonding; increased commitment to school; and increased student expectations of themselves, have been proven to reduce the incidence and severity of drug use and other unsafe behaviors among youth.

The project’s goals are to prevent substance abuse and HIV infection among youth ages 12 to 17. For more information, call 407.650.6223.

A Village House is a program where neighborhood residents volunteer to use their homes as safe havens and activity centers for neighborhood youth.

It provides a safe haven for children who may be subject to community violence, family violence, abuse, neglect, and gang related activities. Village Houses are also needed for latch key children, those children who are left home alone. They also provide a safe place for kids to gather after school and engage in educational and recreational activities. In addition to providing a safe place for children, the Village House has become a place for learning, personal growth and making new friends.

Each Village House is named with a Swahili word describing a strong community value that the Village House is tyring to instill in the neighborhood. Some examples of the house names are: Kuumba ("Thinking of Ways To Make Our Community Better"), Ujima ("Working Together and Helping Each Other") and Mwanza ("The Child is Protected"). Children are now taking pride in belonging to a Village House and calling it by name.

Family Opportunities for Caring, Understanding, & Success (FOCUS) is an empowerment program that works with children, adolescents, and their families in an effort to promote healthy, positive, and productive relationships and skills. Masters level counselors are able to address a variety of issues including depression, anxiety, life adjustment, grief, family conflict, anger management, stress, unhealthy relationships, poor school performance, financial issues, unemployment, drug use, abuse, and low self esteem.

Services include Individual Counseling, Family Counseling, Group Counseling, Crisis Intervention, Parent Workshops, Support Groups, Resource Information and Referrals, which are conducted in the office, in the home, and/or in the schools.

Any person living in the designated service area is eligible to participate in the FOCUS program, and services are free to program participants.

Alpha provides a foundation which helps to empower children cognitively, socially, and emotionally to be successful, resilient individuals. All students in the grade level(s) that Alpha serves are eligible to receive services. Counseling services require parent permission.

Master's level counselors are available to provide a variety of services including Individual Counseling, Small Group Counseling, Family Counseling, Parent Workshops, and Life Skill Lessons, Academic Assistance, Family/Community Building Activities, and various other services.