Example Central
This report covers 18 examples of innovative nondetention programming in action. Readers can see what solutions each site tried and garner plenty of inspiration for tackling expanded reform efforts in their own jurisdictions.
This report, the 14th installment in the Pathways to Juvenile Detention Reform series, features three sites that created a kinder, fairer detention system for America’s troubled youth. Readers will learn how these jurisdictions — hot on the heels of reform success — rallied their freshly-sharpened toolkits and reenergized spirits to focus on a new task: Transforming the entire juvenile justice system. And guess what? The leap to a larger stage paid off.
This report covers 18 examples of innovative nondetention programming in action. Readers can see what solutions each site tried and garner plenty of inspiration for tackling expanded reform efforts in their own jurisdictions.
Three ways (of many) that our juvenile court systems and corrections programs are failing today’s youth include: 1) relying too heavily on costly, ineffective out-of-home placements; 2) ignoring research and results; and 3) treating children of color more harshly than their white counterparts.
In response to a persistent problem — juveniles showing up in court without family support — California’s Santa Cruz County turned to its parents for guidance. Their input led the county to create a video outlining how parents can get involved in their child’s court proceedings. Parental feedback also helped officials create new educational pamphlets on drug use, relapse and treatment and launch a program called Family Partners that employed parents of children who had already navigated the justice system.
Illinois’ Cook County Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department set out to transform its white, male-dominated staff into a workforce that better reflected the clients they served. One means to this end? Creating a competitive scholarship program to help educate and train about 50 former probationers each year — almost all of whom are youth of color.
Both Cook and Multnomah counties adopted a model called Multisystemic Therapy to help tackle the complicated issue of delinquency and substance abuse. This science-based approach involves four to six months of intensive, family-based treatment — not incarceration — and saves taxpayers more than $7,000 per youth served.
Thanks to JDAI, sites uncovered some important truths that extend far beyond the arena of detention reform. They learned that: data is powerful; community organizations are invaluable; collaboration is good; and objective decision making is essential.
