The Middle Earth Community Youth Centers provide a safe and supervised place for any youth between the ages of 10 and 18 to gather and interact positively with their peers. Youth are able to “walk-in” during Center hours.  Our Centers become a "home away from home" for many kids, a place to go instead of "hanging out" on the street. The staff strive to provide a support system to youth who would otherwise not have one, in the hopes of intervening prior to troubled behavior.

These comprehensive service centers provide an array of benefits to youth all in one location, including:

• tutoring,
• special interest groups,
• leadership training,
• mentoring,
• community service,
• crisis intervention and referral services,
• recreation (such as pool table, ping pong table, TV, VCR, stereo, exercise equipment, board and video games, arts and crafts materials, cameras, computers, sound booth equipment and a bulletin board of planned activities),
• caring and supportive adults who act as role models,
• informal counseling, and
• life skills center (e.g. job skills, cooking, obtaining a driver’s license, financial literacty, independent living).

Download the Community Youth Centers brochure.

The 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) is a comprehensive after-school program, which supports students' academic, behavioral, emotional and social growth in an atmosphere of mutual respect and encouragement. The 21st CCLC program serves middle school aged students from Bound Brook and South Bound Brook and operates year-round.

The program provides students with opportunities in the following areas:

• academic remediation and enrichment,
• character education (such as fun and energetic activities that reinforce the six pillars of character, including respect and trust, and developing prevention skills for gangs and substance abuse),
• community service,
• cultural and artistic opportunities (such as art, culinary arts, computer technology, creative writing, environmental science, home economics, musical drama, scrapbooking, and videography),
• educational field trips (such as art museums, science centers, performing arts centers, zoos and aquariums, and local historical sites),
• family programming,
• health, nutrition, fitness and physical activity,
• on-site counseling, and
• recreation.

Download the 21st CCLC brochure.

The Advantages Program is a community based dispositional alternative program that provides comprehensive and structured after-school services for youth involved in the justice system. Youth must be referred to the program (download our brochure below to learn about the referral process). The Advantages Program offers a continuum of care for youth as well as care for their family. Each youth has an individualized treatment plan tailored to their needs that outlines their personal goals for successful completion of the program. The program teaches youth how to utilize free time constructively.

The services of the program include:

• Advocacy
• Case management
• Character education
• Community service
• Community Youth Center
• Crisis intervention
• Daily after-school supervision
• Daily group meetings
• Educational support / tutoring / homework assistance
• Electronic monitoring (as necessary)
• Information and referral
• Leadership training (Rising Stars)
• Life skills education
• Parent education and involvement/meetings
• Recreation
• Substance abuse assessments, counseling and education
• Therapy (individual, group and family)
• Transportation
• Urinalysis screenings (as necessary)

Download the Advantages brochure.

The Employment Readiness Program (ERP) responds to the needs of youth between the ages of 14 and 21 who are facing an array of issues and need support to refine their employment readiness skills. Middle Earth helps these youth become more marketable in the workforce, which in turn allows them to become a productive member of the community. The program, which is tailored to the needs of the individual youth, takes approximately 4 months to complete, with one year of follow-up. Referrals to the program come from a variety of sources, which are listed on our brochure below.

The services provided include:

• Advocacy
• Career planning and development services
• Case management
• Completion of an Employment Readiness Workbook
• Counseling (alcohol, drug, individual, family), as appropriate
• County ID acquirement
• Creation of an individual plan to include the youth’s goals related to education, employment, and other services identified
• Driver’s permit preparation/written test
• Employment application information/completion
• Enrollment in adult night school/GED program
• Field trips to appropriate schools, colleges, occupational and/or vocational schools
• Group meetings (including weekly life skills groups and substance abuse education groups)
• Information and referral
• Job searches
• Leadership development
• Mentoring
• Occupational skill training (as appropriate)
• Outreach to the youth
• Post Secondary education and/or employment services
• Resume information/construction
• Summer employment opportunities
• Supervision
• TABE testing
• Transportation (as appropriate)
• Tutoring

Download the Employment Readiness Program brochure.

The Linkages' School Based Program is a collaborative effort among local agencies designed to offer health services, life skills education, employment services, counseling, and safe recreational services to youth at one site: the Somerset County Vocational and Technical High School (SCVTHS).

Linkages offers year-round free services to all SCVTHS students (including part time) between 14 and 21 years old. Middle Earth’s role is to provide the recreational component of the Linkages Program through the use of a youth center at SCVTHS and offer recreation and outreach services to the students in order to provide safe and positive leisure activities and identify youth who are in need of special services. Recreational services are offered both through the Linkages Youth Center as well as through a variety of trips offered to participants throughout the year.

Download the Linkages (recreation component) brochure.

The Outreach Program provides stability to youth and their families through intensive mentoring services, which are tailored to meet the individual needs of the adolescent and their family. We help the youth adopt the value of taking responsibility for their actions. The youth meets with a trained, caring adult who provides mentoring on a consistent, long-term basis. Referrals to the program come from a variety of sources, which are listed on our brochure below.

The program provides the following services:

• Advocacy
• Case management
• Counseling
• Crisis intervention
• Educational support
• Group activities and trips
• Information and referral
• Life skills education
• Mentoring
• Outreach to youth and family
• Recreational activities
• Respite
• Supervision
• Support services to youth and their families
• Transportation

Download the Outreach brochure.

The Station House Adjustment (SHA) Program provides community service to first-time offending youth who commit a petty offense as a consequence for their behavior. To participate in the program, the youth cannot have any prior arrests or be on Probation, must be between the ages of 10 and 18, and be a Somerset County resident. The goal of this intervention is to deter the youth from continuing their negative behavior and progressing further into the juvenile justice system.

The services of the program include:

• Community service development and supervision
• Life skill opportunities
• Informal counseling
• Mentoring
• Information and referral services, as needed
• Support services, as needed

Download the Station House Adjustment brochure.