THE FIRST TWO PARTS OF A THREE-PART PROJECT ARE PRESENTED: THE EXPLANATION OF THE CONCEPT OF FAMILY COUNSELING AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL JUVENILE COURT HANDLING OF YOUNG PERSONS IN NEED OF SUPERVISION OR OTHER NONCRIMINAL DELINQUENTS, AND TRAINING MATERIALS AND CASE HISTORIES DEVELOPED FOR A SERIES OF NINE WORKSHOPS TO INFORM JUVENILE COURT JUDGES AND PROBATION ADMINISTRATORS ABOUT THE WORKINGS OF THE SACRAMENTO (CALIF.) DIVERSION PROJECT. THE THIRD PART CONSISTS OF A SERIES OF TRAINING FILMS. THE THESIS COVERS THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE SACRAMENTO PROJECT, POINTING OUT THAT TRUANTS, RUNAWAYS, AND STATUS OFFENDERS GENERALLY ACCOUNT FOR ABOUT A THIRD OF THE SACRAMENTO JUVENILE COURT CASELOAD. A PREPROJECT CASE STUDY, A DETAILED EXAMINATION OF A TYPICAL STATUS OFFENDER, THE FAILURE OF THE TRADITIONAL COURT PROCEDURE TO SUCCESSFULLY HANDLE STATUS OFFENDERS, AND THE PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN IMPLEMENTING THE FAMILY THERAPY PROGRAM ARE ALL DISCUSSED. THE BASIC CONCEPTS OF FAMILY CRISIS COUNSELING ARE EXPLAINED AND APPLICATION OF THESE CONCEPTS IN THE CRISIS SETTING IS DETAILED. THE THESIS ALSO COVERS APPLICATION OF THE BASIC CONCEPTS OF FAMILY CRISIS COUNSELING TO THE PROBATION DEPARTMENT, TO PROBATION OFFICERS AS INDIVIDUALS AND AS PARENTS, AND TO SPECIAL DIVERSION UNITS WITHIN A DEPARTMENT. INTAKE AND DISPOSITION OF CASES AND PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS ARE COVERED. THE MANUAL CONTAINS SAMPLES OF ALL FORMS USED IN THE PROJECT, AN OVERVIEW OF SIMILAR PROJECTS IN OTHER COMMUNITIES, A PROCEDURES MANUAL FOR PROBATION COUNSELORS, A PROCEDURES MANUAL FOR TRAINERS, AND A PROCEDURES MANUAL FOR SUPERVISORS. EACH MANUAL CONTAINS NUMEROUS CASE STUDIES AND SAMPLE THERAPY INTERACTIONS. TABLES PRESENT STATISTICS FROM THE SACRAMENTO PROJECT. REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED.