 Children’s Beach House
We all think of Lewes as a vacation destination, but did you know that the town is home to the Children’s Beach House, which has been a spot for children with special needs since 1930?
Children’s Beach House Programs
The Youth Development Program (YDP) serves children ages 7–15.
The Sandcastle Day Camp Program is a four-week series that serves children ages 4–6.
The Delaware Center for Youth Development serves children, families, and the community by offering staff development and technical assistance to youth-serving organizations.
For more information about children’s programs visit www.cbhinc.org.
Interview with the Director
The following is an i nterview with Jennifer Clement, Director of The Delaware Center for Youth Development.
Q: What is your organization’s mission?
A: Lydia Chichester du Pont founded the Children’s Beach House in the early 1930s. It is a non-profit organization with a mission that follows Lydia’s vision “to help children with special needs reach their highest potential as functional members of their families and communities.”*
Q: What are the goals of the Children’s Beach House?
A: The Children’s Beach House takes a holistic approach to children and how they learn. The staff hopes to engage Delaware by starting first with rebuilding neighborhoods and their surrounding communities. The basic concept is children growing through parents and community relationships.
Q: How was the need determined?
A: A needs assessment was done in order to determine where the gap for at-risk children lies. In 2006 the Center for Disability Studies at the University of Delaware was in charge of the assessment that determined such gaps. Their assessment saw a need for children with hearing, speech, and social/emotional problems.
 Q: How are programs evaluated?
A: The programs are outcome based. The children should feel a sense of safety after finishing a Beach House program. Children are evaluated through logic models, board member observations, surveys to youth and parents, interviews, staff observations, and case manager reviews.
Q: How are programs funded?
A: Thirty percent of the funding for these programs comes from the foundation, with the majority coming from fundraising efforts. There are three main fundraisers: an art show, 5K run, and the Sand Castle’s Ball.
Q: Why was The Delaware Center for Youth Development created?
A: There was a need beyond a summer camp session. Individuals in the program have to be able to constantly apply what they have learned year round. Clement believes that the greatest learning happens through processing. Therefore, case managers now aid parents and their children throughout the year, promoting a deeper interaction between children, parents, and the community. The Center also offers educational materials, tools, and consultation.
Q: Why is this program so important?
A: All of the programs for children and parents thrive on teaching “life skills” that can be applied and used to aid in appropriate social interactions. The Center however, offers the most interactive trainings. For example, trainings are offered in topics like 40 assets, developmental assets that are used as building blocks for healthy, caring, and responsible development. Other topics include information on leadership skills, managing groups, diversity, and safety. The biggest area of this program focuses on conflict resolution skills. For example, one skill, de-escalation, assists individuals in the reduction of an intense conflict situation. One approach is by learning how to deal with a difficult situation, and the other is by helping to give individuals a voice. Facilitation, mediation, conflict coaching, conflict management, creative conflict resolution, and bully prevention are also among this extensive list of conflict-resolution-related trainings.
*Children’s Beach House, www.cbhinc.org.
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