Working with youth to overcome barriers to achieve dreams.
“There are a lot of young people doing great things in our community, and we need to support them. But they also face challenges that have been with us for decades: financial strain, high drop-out rates, teen pregnancy, criminal activity, and substance abuse. These are serious challenges, but I’m determined to continue working with our youth, their parents and guardians, and their teachers to overcome these barriers.” – Commissioner Sergio “Chico” Rodriguez
Commissioner Rodriguez is working to ensure that programs are available to address the daily issues that can sometimes put the strain on families that affect our children and young people. Through his annual clothing and back pack drives to his support of stay-in-school programs and his work to ensure that eligible parents get the financial aid necessary for their children’s health needs so that they can succeed in school, Commissioner Rodriguez has worked to keep our kids healthy, safe and in-school.
When young people get in trouble, we have to act fast with quality intervention and education. The Commissioner is proud to support the Bexar County Juvenile Drug Court, which focuses on first-time offenders for substance abuse offenses. The Drug Court Program effectively intervenes and educates without having to incur a juvenile adjudication component. This Program attempts to divert young children from placement outside their home by opening them up to substance abuse in-home counseling. Because of the hard work put for by the Juvenile Drug Court, the Commissioner has been proud to support applications successfully requesting state funding for substance abuse counseling Programs. Giving youth the opportunity to atone for and correct their mistakes at a young age increases their chances for success.
