Loss of a job. Deep cuts in pay or work hours. Under-employment. These painful-but-real misfortunes increase in tough economic times and stress family units. Children and teens struggle to cope with the family's changing circumstances and the worries it brings and the constant stress-and even anger-can fuel behavioral issues and hinder students' readiness to learn.

This extended recession has brought these issues into sharp focus, moving town leaders to seek to provide a stronger safety net for struggling youth and families. Central to this goal is increasing the availability of clinical counseling and support services for youth and families at the Youth & Family Services agency.

At a recent Board of Selectmen's meeting, the agency's new director, Heather McNeil, reviewed her recent efforts to re-tool the agency assignments and staffing to add clinical counseling services to support youth and families. She noted this need was mentioned by school district leaders in her orientation discussions with them. They saw a need for more counseling support outside of school to address youth behavioral issues identified in or demonstrated in school settings.

But how to accomplish this feat without adding to the agency's budget? In a creative solution, McNeil arranged for help from four masters-level marriage and family counseling interns from three schools: the University of Connecticut's School of Social Work, Central Connecticut State University, and St. Josephs' College. In addition, two bachelors-level interns-one from Mitchell College and one from York College-now work in the Wilderness Program and facilitate community service projects, freeing up paid staff to do more counseling work.

She reported that counseling service intakes are up 15- to 20 percent compared to last year and that, with the current rate of growth, the increase could be 20- to 25 percent. The counseling interns allow the agency to expand services, including offering appointments in the afternoons and evenings. Currently, she said the agency serves clients from age 4 through age 82.

"People are wanting more services and we are being creative in finding ways to do that with existing staff and interns," said McNeil.

McNeil reported she's also been working to fill agency slots left open due to staff departures. Wendy Mill, formerly the agency's volunteers coordinator, was hired to be the new Healthy Community Health Youth coordinator after Paula Palmieri's departure and the hiring of Rory Pinaud of Old Saybrook to take Mill's former post as the volunteers coordinator.

"There's a lot of change [in the organization] and we're being deliberative about filling in the open staff positions," said McNeil.

One slot for which interviews are underway is the family resource and youth coordinator whose role will be to help expand agency services for parent education and support.

"We want to encourage and mobilize parents in the community to become more involved in the prevention and education activities we're doing with their children," explained McNeil.