California Youth Services is a multi-service nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide a variety of programs and services to include education, prevention, intervention, assessment, and counseling that assist and support adolescents, individuals, couples, and families to address life’s challenges specializing in issues related to substance abuse, delinquent behavior, mental health struggles, and families in crisis.
The history of California Youth Services goes back to 2002 with the establishment of the Juvenile Alcohol & Drug Education (JADE) Program providing substance abuse education and diversion to adolescents and their parents referred from collaborative partners throughout Orange County. Growth over subsequent years, led to the Boys & Girls Club of Tustin adopting CYS as a fiscally sponsored project and CYS extended its professional collaborations and services to include school districts and local law enforcement agencies. The Decisions Legal Awareness and Prevention Program was established to address delinquent behavior, poor decision making, and provide education to adolescents about the realities of their decision making. Individual counseling services soon became a necessity for those needing additional services and follow-up care.
Realizing there was a strong need in the community, in 2010 CYS established a full service counseling facility to provide mental health services to all age groups and concerns (Pathways Community Counseling Center). During that same year, attendance at various CYS programs grew by approximately 20%. In the years since, CYS became its own nonprofit entity and has provided prevention, education, drug testing, and mental health services to thousands of adolescents, parents, and community members throughout the county.
Today, CYS is a multi-service 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization impacting more than 5,000 individuals each year with offices in Laguna Hills and Tustin and several program sites across Orange County. Our staff is well versed in working with youth at risk for substance abuse and delinquent behavior, as well as individuals and families in need of mental health services. The staff, speakers, board members, and wonderful volunteers that make CYS possible are dedicated to the services we provide and continually looking to expand our reach by providing new programs and establishing partnerships throughout the community we serve. Please follow the links to learn more about our various different programs and how we may be able to best serve you.