Jefferson Center for Mental Health - S.T.E.P. (Systematic Training for Effective Parenting) Parenting Education Classes

S.T.E.P. Parenting Class

S.T.E.P. (Systematic Training for Effective Parenting) Parenting Education Classes meet weekly for six weeks. Classes focus on how best to help parents and children relate to one another and demonstrate that traditional parenting tactics do not always work with children with mental illness. S.T.E.P. classes provide skills on how to effectively parent children and adolescents with mental illness and are designed to increase parental awareness of their children's behavior.

The class utilizes material presented in the parenting handbooks entitled Parenting Young Children; The Parent’s Handbook; and STEP/Teen, written by Don Dinkmeyer, Jr. et al. (Purchasing the parenting manual is not a course requirement.)

The material is covered in seven two and one-half hour sessions. The course is designed with five major goals in mind: (1) provide information about how children think, feel, and act; (2) improve parents' skills, which will enhance their enjoyment and effectiveness as parents; (3) develop self-esteem and confidence of children; (4) assist parents in establishing long-term goals of parenting; and (5) provide support for each participant as a parent and as a person. Participants utilize homework assignments and in-class quizzes to reinforce information conveyed via group discussion and classroom exercises.

Topics of discussion covered in the class include, but are not limited to, understanding the goals of children’s misbehavior, learning decision-making skills to appropriately respond to misbehavior, helping children build their self-esteem, dealing with parents' irrational belief systems, assertive communication with children, problem solving skills, effective methods of discipline, and special challenges parents sometimes may encounter (e.g. dealing with Attention Deficit Disorder or other mental health issues).

The cost of the class is $200. If a client (or their child[ren] have Medicaid, then Medicaid will cover the cost for this class. Participants do not have to be enrolled as clients of Jefferson Center for Mental Health to have Medicaid pay for the class. In order to make referrals, please have the client call Mike Daniel at 303-432-5243, and leave their name, phone number, and payor source (e.g. Medicaid, self-pay, etc.), plus who referred them (i.e. who gave them my phone number). Mike will then contact the clients directly with more details about the next available class.