Treatment programs for youthful offenders aren&#8217;t normally thought of as a big draw for out-of-state visitors.</p><p>But lawmakers and children&#8217;s advocates from around the country have been beating a path to Missouri to tour the residential centers operated by the state&#8217;s Division of Youth Services.</p><p>The division received a well-deserved honor this month when Harvard University&#8217;s Kennedy School of Government selected it as one of 50 programs worth emulating.</p><p>Other states already have taken that cue. Louisiana and New Mexico, as well as Washington D.C., are revamping their juvenile justice programs based on the &#8220;Missouri model,&#8221; and more states are seeking advice on how to get started.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s the most natural, decent rehabilitative setting I&#8217;ve ever seen,&#8221; said Vincent Schiraldi, Washington&#8217;s director of youth rehabilitation.</p><p>Missouri became a trendsetter when it shut down a hulking youth correctional facility in the 1980s and created a system of cottage-type homes with multiple services for juveniles with criminal records.</p><p>The results have been impressive. A study showed that nearly three-fourths of youths released from the program had avoided serious trouble with the law three years later.</p><p>Mark Steward, the former division director who developed the Missouri model, retired three years ago and set up the Missouri Youth Services Institute to export the concept to other states and counties.</p><p>He has more work than he can handle.</p><p>The current director, Tim Decker, is committed to the idea that counseling, education and job training can convert youthful offenders into productive citizens.</p><p>Missouri&#8217;s approach qualifies as a winner. Investing in young people saves money on long-term incarceration costs while helping to build a better future for the state.