In a meeting room at the America on Wheels museum in Allentown Friday, several adults played with toys.

Social worker Diane Mantore gently squeezed a flexible rubber ball, creating little air pockets in her hands as she listened to the presentation.

Whitehall High School Principal Christopher Schiffert hung two poseable frog stick figures on a sign at his table that read, "youth engagement committee."

They weren't bored with what was going on. In fact, the toys were placed at the tables specifically to keep them and the rest of the audience engaged.

"Adult educators often use these to facilitate learning," said Denise Continenza, consumer sciences educator with the Penn State Extension. "People who are tactile-kinesthetic learners like to play or doodle while in a learning situation as it helps them retain and make sense of information."

Continenza wanted to make sure everyone was engaged. From her point of view, the future of area youth may depend on it.

The gathering was a board orientation for Communities That Care, a model designed to support the healthy development of youth. Continenza is one of the CTC coordinators.

Although no one could say definitively how much the toys contributed, any help was appreciated because the material covered was difficult.

"Studying prevention is tough," said the main presenter, Phyllis Law, a CTC coordinator and technical assistant with the Penn State EPiSCenter (Evidence-based Prevention & Intervention Support Center).

"There's a general misconception that all the problems are in the schools," Law said. However, handouts on risk factors and problem youth behaviors such as substance abuse, delinquency, teen pregnancy and violence showed schools to be one of the safest of the four domains addressed by the CTC model.

The other three domains – family, community and peers – show a greater correlation. Problem behaviors are tied more closely with the behavior of a teen's friends and with family conflict, for example.

It will take about a year to fully implement CTC and then it will be another two to five years to see results, said Law.

"This timeline is what makes prevention hard," she said. "It's hard because we don't see big changes immediately."

"It's a lot to take in," said Bethany Brown, who works with the Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living, which assists people with disabilities.

Whitehall-Coplay School Board member Patty Gaugler also said she was "overwhelmed" by the amount of information presented. Participants were unable to take any real step forward in formulating a plan for their communities because the results of the Pennsylvania Youth Survey, administered to students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 in both Whitehall-Coplay and Salisbury school districts, were not yet available.

The survey, paid for by a grant obtained by the Center for Humanistic Change, includes 90 questions designed to assess how youth feel about their community, school, grades and family life and asks them how they spend their time.

"We need to see the data and where it's headed," said Whitehall Police Chief Linda Kulp.

Others agreed.

Without the data, it's difficult to say how Whitehall High School can be involved, said Schiffert, taking a break from the toys.

"At this point we're looking to see what the data provides," he said.

"I think now we're anxiously awaiting the PAYS survey to see what areas we're going to focus on," said Salisbury parent Linda Kennington.

Even without the survey data, however, participants found the orientation valuable.

"It really helped," said Whitehall school counselor Linda McGill. "Now it makes more sense to us."

Greg Mooney, recreation bureau chief for Whitehall Township, worked for KidsPeace for 10 years before coming to the township to run its recreation programs.

"I come from a background of recreation therapy," he said. "This may help us fill gaps in our program."

Gaugler said she hopes CTC will help her "to be a voice for kids whose parents are not involved."

"I'm feeling excited about it," said Kennington.

Retired Salisbury guidance counselor Jeanne Papesh also also said she was looking forward to seeing CTC become a reality.

"I have a vested interest because I worked for Salisbury for many years and I love Salisbury," she said.

Although some participants were involved specifically involved with either Whitehall or Salisbury, some represented both – or planned to pitch in wherever they may be needed.

Several Lehigh County Juvenile Probation officers were among them.

"Obviously, one of the goals here is to prevent kids from coming to my department so we do have a stake in this," said Tom Ganser, juvenile probation deputy chief.

Probation officers in his department are assigned to geographic areas.

"We want them out in the community," Ganser said. "We want them to be part of the solution as well."

Project Impact, a private agency in Emmaus, is always looking for resources, said Montore, who enjoyed playing with the rubber ball throughout the day.

"I work with kids who get in trouble for the first time so this is right up my alley," she said. "We'll hop in wherever we can help."