The Core Collective Assessment Center – Provider Round Table: Session 1
Momentum Builds around The Core Collective’s Youth and Family Assessment Center
On March 13, 2025, The Core Collective at Saint Vincent hosted the first Provider Round Table session to discuss plans for The Youth and Family Assessment Center, marking a significant step toward creating a centralized hub for transformation, collaboration, and shared resources aimed at benefiting our youth, families, and community.
The Youth and Family Assessment Center, designed to disrupt cycles of crisis and create pathways to stability, will be housed within The Core Collective’s 110,000-square-foot building on 22 acres of land. The Center represents a proactive approach to addressing problem behaviors and family crises before they escalate into deeper system involvement. Research underscores that when children are diverted from the court system and connected to treatment, their likelihood of future involvement with the justice system dramatically decreases.
Thank You to Our Partners
Thank you to the St. Louis County Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) Team for partnering with The Core Collective at Saint Vincent to host the Community Collaborative meeting. This provided attendees with an opportunity to envision the potential within our space. Special thanks to Elizabeth Pickard and our partners at The Rome Group for expertly facilitating the session.
Cross-System Collaboration
“As we move forward with the implementation of the Assessment Center, we must remain steadfast in our commitment to cross-system collaboration. The challenges facing our children and families are not isolated to one sector; they span education, mental health, child welfare, and the justice system. Our ability to break down silos and create a seamless network of support will be the key in diverting children and families from systems that we know are overwhelmed.”
Latosha Fowlkes, LCSW, President and CEO, The Core Collective at Saint Vincent
The event brought together a diverse group of organizations committed to collective impact, including:
- AI Altruists
- Annie’s Hope
- beTOGETHERstl
- Beyond Housing
- BJC Behavioral Health
- CASA St. Louis County
- Chestnut Health Systems
- Children’s Division
- Community Action Agency of St. Louis County
- Community and Economic Development Solutions
- Covering House
- Department of Mental Health/Department of Behavioral Health
- Division of Youth Services
- Easterseals Midwest
- Episcopal City Mission
- Every Child’s Hope
- Family Forward MO
- Fathers and Families Support Center
- Ferguson-Florissant School District
- Foster & Adoptive Care Coalition
- Jennings School District
- Khaos, Inc.
- KVC Health Systems
- Marygrove
- Mers Goodwill
- People’s Health Centers
- Places for People
- Preferred Family Healthcare
- Prevent Ed
- Saint Louis MHB
- Special School District of St. Louis County
- St. Louis Area Violence Prevention Commission
- St. Louis ArtWorks
- St. Louis Community College
- St. Louis County Children’s Service Fund
- St. Louis County Courts
- St. Louis County Department of Public Health
- St. Louis County Prosecutor’s Office
- The Remix
- The Rome Group
- Urban League
- Vision for Children at Risk
- Youth in Need
- YouthBridge Community Foundation
