Keys to Innervisions is an integrated character development curriculum that focuses on cognitive restructuring, chemical dependency, self-concept, and goal achievement. KIV’s approach is cognitive-behavioral, skill-oriented, multi-modal and family-oriented. Program developers describe KIV as an educational curriculum about change, specifically changing the beliefs and behaviors that lead to violence, drug abuse/dependence, school and social failure, and criminal behavior. The program aims to help young people experience hope and a sense of personal power that they can create alternatives to self-destructive behaviors. In addition to the adolescent curriculum, there is also the ‘Possibility Parenting’ program for biological parents, caretakers, foster parents, and any other person in a position to influence the thinking of children and youth (e.g., extended family, teen parents, institutional staff). The goal of Possibility Parenting is to reduce risk factors -- family violence, child abuse, unemployment, substance abuse, teen pregnancy, and school dropout -- by improving the ability of caretakers to raise children who have high self-esteem, an internal locus of control, and emotional balance. The parent curriculum encourages participants to examine these issues in their own lives and to discover ways to promote these qualities in their adolescent children. First implemented in 1990, KIV has been used by juvenile justice systems and schools in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Kentucky, Idaho, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Oregon, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.

Target Population

- Grade Level: from  Sixth grade to  Twelfth grade