New Harbor Juvenile Assessment Center opens in Henderson

A fifth Harbor Juvenile Assessment Center has opened to serve Clark County residents in the southeast region of the valley.

The wraparound service center will now help children and families in an additional office in Henderson, at 98 E. Lake Mead Parkway, Suite 207, the county said in a Monday news release.

The Harbor is a public-private partnership that offers diversion services to prevent children from entering the juvenile justice system. Services identify and address problematic behavior or deliquency through court diversion programs, tutoring, educational support, mentoring and counseling.

The city of Henderson will pay $27,420 for the initial lease of the office space for the new location with an annual increase of 3 percent, senior public information officer Kathleen Richards said. It’s a 2,000-square-foot office in the St. Rose Dominican Medical Plaza and includes a reception area, youth-friendly lounge and play area, offices and a conference room.

“The opening of a Harbor Juvenile Assessment Center in Henderson will bring critical supportive services to our community to help at-risk youth and their families who might otherwise get lost in the juvenile justice system,” Henderson Mayor Debra March said in a statement. “By providing early intervention and improving access to the appropriate resources, we can keep Henderson kids in school and ensure they have a bright future.”

Eagle Quest, a counseling and behavorial health service provider, will manage the Henderson site for Clark County, according to the news release. It also manages three Harbor locations in Las Vegas.

Partnering agencies include Clark County School District, Nevada Departments of Health and Human Services and Child and Family Services, Clark County Family Court, Clark County District Attorney’s Office, area police departments and nonprofits such as Three Square food bank.

Officials estimate that Harbor locations have served more than 17,000 children and their families since opening in October 2016. Most Harbor clients are referred by the school district, though about a quarter of clients are walk-ins from the community, according to the release. Police also drop off kids at Harbor locations instead of the juvenile detention center, or intake staff at the detention center divert kids to a Harbor Center, to avoid first-time or low-level offenses.

All locations operate from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.