They have gang involvement and criminal justice history, but what they don’t have is a Social Security card or a birth certificate.
Memphis Allies participants enter programming with real problems in need of practical solutions. Many times, a case manager is the person who leads the way in solving those problems.
“We always say case management is the glue to the whole thing,” said Brittney Ragin, director of programs at Memphis Allies.
Participants typically have their first contact with an outreach specialist; their most frequent contact is with a life coach. They do hard personal work in clinical sessions; but it is the case manager who helps with immediate the essential needs.
Haven’t eaten in a couple of days, and neither has your 1-year-old or his mother? The case manager can help with that.
Need a rooming house? Need to obtain those vital records? Need to enroll in classes to earn your high school diploma or GED?
The case manager helps with all of that and more. Angela Hughes, a case manager in the SWITCH (Support with Intention to Create Hope) program in Frayser, adds that teamwork is critical as case managers collaborate with outreach specialists, life coaches and clinical therapists.
“With all of us working together, we can solve a lot of situations,” Hughes said. “Everybody’s role is important.”
No ID, no future
Memphis Allies is not just about moving people away from gun violence; it is about setting them on a positive path with a long-term future. It is difficult to have that without a permanent address or state identification.
“A lot of these guys are couch-surfing because they’re unemployed,” Hughes said.
And they are unemployed due to a lack of state ID.
“Most companies won’t hire without ID,” said Elise McNutt, also a SWITCH case manager.
SWITCH Youth case managers work as much as with families as they do the participants themselves.
“You have to make sure the caregiver gets them enrolled in school and [help] find something they’re interested in after school, so they don’t fall in with the wrong crowd,” said Case Manager Angelica Lewis. “They might be almost living independently at 17 or 18, but at 13 or 14, the parent has to be on board.”
Reliable transportation is a frequent challenge for SWITCH and SWITCH Youth participants. All too often, a participant might drive without having a valid driver’s license.
“If you have legal involvement, the last thing you need is to get stopped driving without a license,” Lewis said.
We always say case management is the glue to the whole thing
– Brittney Ragin
Director of programs at Memphis Allies
The secret
One reason so many participants don’t have a license? They can’t read well enough to pass the written exam. In fact, McNutt said poor reading ability usually is what hastens them dropping out of high school.
“It’s embarrassing at the age of 16 or 17,” McNutt said. “They don’t want the girls to know they can’t read.”
Avoiding embarrassment is a recurring theme. What might be humiliating to share with a male life coach or outreach specialist, a participant will share with a female case manager who is older than they are. This includes finally coming clean about their reading difficulty.
“We’re like their aunties,” McNutt said.
Supportive, but also still insisting on accountability for taking that next, positive, step.
“They regret not finishing school,” said Hughes, a former teacher. “They know they need that high school diploma and that not having it is a barrier.”
Charting a new course
Case managers speak with participants every week during Stage 1. But they also remain involved as participants go on to Stages 2 and 3.
McNutt said about 80% of her participants arrive without a high school diploma or a GED. There are multiple options for remedying that situation, but often there are more immediate concerns.
“They need money to pay rent, buy diapers and buy their mother’s medicine,” McNutt said.
The most direct path to steady income is by getting that diploma or GED, enrolling in a trade school, and then finding sustainable legal income.
This means being ready for the job interview, that one chance at making a good first impression; Memphis Allies often provides button-down shirts and other attire.
“Look nice, look grown, and you need to shave,” Hughes tells participants.
Getting out of the streets is critical, but there is also more than one way to forge a new path. Once in a job, there is the opportunity to keep it and grow with it.
“College isn’t for everybody,” McNutt said. “I tell them that when the world shut down in 2020, the trades were still working. Plumbers, HVAC, roofing, they were all still working.”
