About Us
The ARISE Mission Statement
To provide valuable ARISE life skills and staff training to at-risk youth and the adults who care for them. We enable youth to achieve their highest potential as law-abiding citizens through ARISE group sessions conducted by well trained, caring ARISE facilitators.
The ARISE Vision
Life skills are not hereditary; they must be taught. With this in mind, we dedicate ourselves to building social and emotional fitness in troubled youth.
ARISE Co-Founders
ARISE co-founders Susan and Edmund F. Benson have succeeded in writing easily understood life skills lessons specifically for at-risk children of all ages. Those youth angered, traumatized, and frustrated by their inability to “get it” in classroom settings finally find success in ARISE. The Benson’s also developed a winning formula for training staff in 14 intense hours to effectively teach ARISE curricula in enjoyable, interactive group sessions.
ARISE was founded by Susan and Edmund Benson who have made its mission to empower at-risk populations their life and passion. This provides you with the luxury of asking questions and receiving guidance from two icons whose prime interest is promoting positive behavior, protecting high risk youth from gangs and socially unacceptable activities.
Since 1986, the ARISE formula for empowering at-risk youth has worked because of the partnership between Edmund Benson, an entrepreneur, rebel and school dropout, and his wife Susan, an educator with a master’s degree and a gift for making learning and living fun. Every word, book and program has been personally created, written, taught and managed by the Benson’s, and they are never further from you than your e-mail or the ARISE toll-free number 1-888-680-6100. Just fill out the form and let us know a good time to contact you.
ARISE adds structure to your program.
ARISE adds value and structure to your program by combining its evidence-based library of life skills curricula with its unbeatable staff training. Programs developed by ARISE include age-specific material from pre-k to young adults. Choose from over 260 life skills topics. ARISE staff will consult with you as to how to integrate the ARISE interactive life skills lessons into an existing or new program.
ARISE has almost 30 years of experience in taking the risk out of at-risk youth.
ARISE is being used nationally and internationally by juvenile justice staff, teachers, counselors, alternative and special educators, mental health and residential child care professionals, faith-based organizations, and others who deal directly with youth in conflict. ARISE is particularly effective when working with children and youth involved in self-defeating patterns of behavior.
We know that young people need to feel seen, acknowledged and validated. We know that parents need to spend more quality time with their children, listen and communicate better. We also know that children need to be taught life skills to help them handle the daily stresses that come their way. At ARISE, we have identified more than 260 life-skills, published them in over 100 books, videos, and posters. Whether it is teen anger management, self-esteem enhancement, or how to deal with bullies, all youth can learn to cope. It is time for these kinds of life-skills classes to be incorporated into our schools, alternative education centers, and juvenile justice facilities.
ARISE connects with troubled youth in the juvenile justice system.
ARISE group lessons connect with troubled youth held under lock and key in detention and secure facilities. ARISE life skills curricula, coupled with its unique and dynamic training program for juvenile justice staff, guarantees success.
In the past 10 years in the state of Florida, ARISE has trained and certified over 5,500 Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) staff as ARISE Life-Skills Instructors who then teach important life-skills information to the youth in their charge. ARISE also provides all the curriculum materials to these instructors and DJJ staff to teach life skills. For more information on ARISE’s long history helping young women and men in the juvenile justice system, check out the juvenile justice page.
ARISE Life Skill Trainings change lives and positively transform workplaces.
ARISE trainer Joliett Vega Klucevsek (right) instructs her workshops with a smile.
ARISE offers a number of training opportunities to help those working with at-risk youth to gain important skills. ARISE has developed a winning formula for training staff in 14 intense hours to effectively teach ARISE curricula in enjoyable, interactive group sessions. Check out our Life Skills Instructor Training page to read all about it. If you want the ability to train others to be ARISE Life Skills Instructors, ARISE has a 5-day Master Life Skills Trainer Workshop. In addition, ARISE’s Drop It at the Door Training in anger management, interpersonal communication skills, and stress reduction has eliminated the “boomerang effect” of people transferring their work problems home and back again, and we have the testimonials to back it up!
More information about ARISE
We have provided on the website lots of information about ARISE including testimonials, evidence-based studies, psychological models, awards and honors, news and updates, a photo gallery, and video gallery. These pages will give you a rich understanding of the work that we at ARISE are so proud of.
Feedback
We depend on your feedback to improve our services. Please feel free to contact us and let us know what you think about what we do. The more productive the relationship we have with those who work with at-risk youth, the more our partnership can help save young lives.
Never before or since has a Miami-Dade County bus been dedicated exclusively to a citizen-based organization.
The Bensons created the Enviro-Cops program where 135,000 Miami-Dade Coutny school students pledged to police pollution, reduce waste and recycle. Enviro-Cops also learned about dangers from strangers, cigarettes, and guns. They learned that when there is trouble, the police are our best friends, and to dial 911 if they saw a gun.
View the Enviro-Cops Pledge.
