Youth Ranch shelter in Boise for at-risk youths closes, for now, after 10 workers quit
A staffing shortage has led to a temporary shutdown of the residential program at Hays House, a Boise shelter operated by the Idaho Youth Ranch for runaways and at-risk youth.
Ten employees upset over stressful conditions — including long hours and double shifts, working nine days or more without a day off, not being able to take breaks during their shifts, and concerns over safety — quit two weeks ago.
“I’m not going to dispute that those were expressed,” Idaho Youth Ranch CEO Scott Curtis said by phone.
The resignations left the West Boise shelter, which has served Treasure Valley families for 50 years, without enough staff to adequately care for the children ages 8 to 18 placed there. A decision was made to find other placements for the undisclosed number of children there and not accept any new placements until new employees could be hired and trained, Curtis said.
“We made the decision to continue serving the youth we had until they were appropriately placed as we would do with any of our kids,” Curtis said. “We aren’t accepting new kids into the house until we get fully staffed.”
Curtis said seven Hays House staff members remain.
At least a dozen new staff members are needed for Hays House to begin serving youths again, he said. Openings are listed online.
Some children who stay at Hays House can come there through referrals from schools and the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare’s foster care and mental health programs. Others are walk-ins or children who were living on the street. Families in crisis also seek help.
Typically, children placed at Hays House stay between 10 and 30 days, Curtis said. The shelter is meant to provide a safe place for kids until other living arrangements can be made. The 18-bed shelter was about half full during the pandemic, he said.
The loss of staff did not force any children to be removed from the house ahead of their normal transition schedule, because the employees who left provided enough notice, Curtis said. The house remained open until the last child transitioned out on Sept. 14, he said.
“We don’t share what happens with all the kids, but they were all placed successfully,” he said.
A 24-hour crisis telephone line operated by Hays House was not affected. It continues to operate around the clock, Curtis said.
Hays House operates on a $1.2 million budget, Curtis said. A $2.7 million figure listed in a 2020 financial disclosure form filed with the Internal Revenue Service by the Youth Ranch includes Hays House and other programs.
Funding is provided primarily through grants from the the state-run Idaho Council on Domestic Violence and Victim Assistance and the Idaho Runaway and Homeless Youth program, Curtis said. The federal Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, funds short-term shelters through public and private sources, including state and federal grants, foundations, and corporate and individuals donations.
The Idaho Youth Ranch also provides money it earns from its thrift stores, and Health and Welfare pays for shelter placements.
The problems faced by Hays House are similar to those experienced by many businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, Curtis said.
“The staff at Hays House has done a phenomenal job keeping all of our services open for the last 20 months,” Curtis said. “The challenge has been when we’ve had attrition. We’ve had trouble hiring for those positions.”
It’s no surprise, he said, that health care service providers have faced severe staffing shortages.
“And when that happens, people are working even more because of being short staffed and working multiple shifts, which compounds the stress on these folks working in a stressful environment,” Curtis said. “And we just reached a point with staffing that we couldn’t keep the program open without pausing to regroup and hire a bunch of staff and train them.”
Curtis admitted there were some “critical incidents” involving some of the youths at the shelter acting out, which caused concern among some staff members. He declined to talk about any specific incidents, citing privacy concerns.
“We’re kind of in a weird spot right where we can’t really defend ourselves,” Curtis said. “The staff responded very well, and all the kids were kept safe. There were no physical injuries. That happens sometimes when you’re dealing with the kind of youth that we deal with.”
He said dealing with those incidents is stressful, and it causes a snowball effect in regard to wellness and resilience when the shelter is short-staffed and employees are working extra shifts.
“I am really proud of the staff that have been working the last 20 months, including the staff that have decided to leave,” Curtis said. “I’m incredibly proud of the work they’ve done with kids in crisis.”
The Idaho Council on Domestic Violence and Victim Assistance declined to comment. The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare did not return a call.
This story was originally published September 30, 2021 at 4:19 PM.
