Bear Creek Academy

The Bear Creek Academy (BCA) programs are for youth who are currently wards of the Juvenile Court in Merced County and are staffed, and operated by the Merced County Probation Department.  Youth who are currently, wards of the Juvenile Court in Merced County are referred to the program by their assigned Deputy Probation Officer (DPO). BCA programs focus on at-risk youth who have great potential to be productive citizens in the community.

The Bear Creek Short Term programs are designed into three levels.

Orientation Phase

Youth must earn 500 points. The points are earned based on behavior and participation. This option introduces the youth to the program and afford them the option of turning around their life by exposure to the different elements of the program. Youth will have access to counseling in the form of behavioral health, corrective thinking, character counts, ethical values, and substance abuse. They will be actively involved in a structured program developed to encourage positive change in the lives of youth in the program. A central goal of this phase is to expose the participants to different resources in the community to help them thrive once they are placed back in their homes.

Level Two

Youth must earn 1500 points. The points are earned based on behavior and participation. In this level, youth are to participate in all program elements and strive to develop better ways to control their behavior. Youth are to develop leadership skills and assist others in the program. In addition to the elements in the Orientation Phase, youth will learn to work as part of a unit towards a common goal.  This level will help youth start to create a sense of self-worth.

Level Three

Youth must earn 3000 points. The points are earned based on behavior and participation. Youth are to participate in all program components and have a longer period of time to develop good behaviors.  Youth are expected to work towards developing leadership skills and will be educated more fully to their affects, both positive and negative, in their communities through positive choices.  This level is designed to develop a sense of self-worth and empowerment in the youth’s life.

Long Term and Youth Treatment Programs

Youth must earn 6000 points for Long Term and 18250 points for Youth Treatment Program. The points are earned based on behavior and participation.  The programs consist of completing a portion of time in the facility and the remainder of time in the aftercare program. The aftercare portion of the program consists of close supervision by their assigned Deputy Probation Officer and five weeks of electronic monitoring on the GPS system. While in custody the youth enrolled are required to participate in a wide variety of programs and classes that include:  positive social skills, substance abuse, counseling, vocational training, educational assistance, correct thinking, moral and ethical values and stressful community interaction.

Once the youth has reached the ending of the in custody programing, the youth are slowly transitioned back into the community.  The goal of this program is to provide enhanced accountability to the youth who are re-entering the community after completing the in-custody portion of our BCA Long Term and Youth Treatment Programs.