|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Highlight of the Month
 39th Anniversary of the JJDPA
by Dr. Alfred Martin, PhD, CJJ National Chair
September 7, 2013 marked the 39th anniversary of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA) of 1974. Almost forty years after its enactment, the JJDPA is one of the most successful standard-setting statutes at the federal level, and at its heart recognizes the value of citizen-driven efforts to prevent and stem delinquency. However, despite its success, the JJDPA is at risk.
The statute has been due for reauthorization since 2007. It was most recently reauthorized in 2002, which means that we now have a federal statute that fails to reflect all that we've learned about juvenile justice over the past ten years. Federal funding for juvenile justice programs and services is also in jeopardy, declining by almost 50% since the last reauthorization.
Despite the fiscal climate, federal funds to support state and local juvenile justice standards and improvements are essential investments. These monies support programs based in evidence, proven to prevent delinquency, reduce recidivism, and increase public safety-critical investments that are worth the cost.
On average, it costs $241 a day-around $88,000 a year-to incarcerate a young person. The return on this investment is an average recidivism rate of 55 percent. Evidence-based alternatives to incarceration for court-involved youth cost as little as $11 a day and reduce recidivism by an average of 22 percent. Which investment would you choose?
We know what works and we must demand that our leaders provide the necessary resources and appropriate standards of care for our nation's youth. Ask your Member of Congress to support juvenile justice programs today.
|
|
|
|
|
|
CJJ Leadership News
Search Committee Update by Sue Kamp, CJJ Search Committee Chair The CJJ Search Committee is pleased to announce we are now working with Transition Guides as our executive search firm. Transition Guides assisted us with our last executive search in 2006 resulting in the hiring of Nancy Gannon Hornberger. A survey has gone to our members asking for their ideas regarding the qualities we should seek in our new Executive Director. We will soon announce that the position is open, along with information about how to apply. If you have questions about the search process, please get in touch with Sue Kamp, Search Committee Chair at [email protected]. Back to Top
|
CJJ Government and Federal Relations Alert
Appropriations Update
Here We Go Again: Another Continuing Resolution to Avoid a Shutdown
Congress must approve federal spending for discretionary programs by September 30th to avoid a government shutdown. Last week, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) introduced a Continuing Resolution (CR) (H.J. Res. 59), but decided to delay the vote to secure support.
Join CJJ and other allies in asking Members of Congress to secure funding for critical juvenile justice programs and services. We must call on our leaders to increase spending for juvenile justice and, at a minimum, pass an FY 2014 budget that reflects the amounts approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee over the summer.
For an overview of the current budget struggle in Congress, check out this blog posted today on The Hill.
 For any questions, contact Alexandra Staropoli, Esq., Associate Director of Government and Field Relations, at [email protected]. Engage With Your Member of Congress In-District in October CJJ Hosts In-District Training Webinar and Releases In-District Advocacy Toolkit CJJ is encouraging our members and allies to engage with their Members of Congress throughout the month of October. Members of Congress will be heading back to their districts during recess from October 14 to 18, 2013. This is a perfect time to schedule a meeting with your Member or invite them to an event. CJJ recently held a training webinar to discuss ideas and talking points for how to engage with Members. Check out the In-District Training Webinar PowerPoint presentation. If you need any assistance in planning or just want to brainstorm ideas, please contact, Alexandra Staropoli, Esq., CJJ Associate Director of Government and Field Relations, at [email protected].  As a follow up to the In-District Training webinar, CJJ released the fall 2013 In-District Advocacy Toolkit. The Toolkit provides a step-by-step guide on how to engage with your Members of Congress when they are in district. It walks you through how to schedule a meeting with your Member, attend a town hall meeting, plan a site or program visit, and write an op-ed or letter to the editor. It also includes CJJ advocacy priorities, briefing sheets to use as leave-behinds, and sample letters for your use. ACT4JJ Unveils New Website and JJDPA Matters Advocacy Campaign  CJJ and our partners are excited to announce that we have revamped the ACT4JJ website and kicked off our JJDPA Matters Advocacy Campaign. Last Tuesday, ACT4JJ sponsored a National Day of Action to celebrate the 39th Anniversary of the JJDPA. We also launched our new website, JJDPA Matters Blog Project, and JJDPA Matters Action Center, powered by SparkAction. To become more involved in ACT4JJ, contact Alexandra Staropoli, Esq. at [email protected]. |
CJJ Conference News
Southern Region Conference
News from the Kentucky Juvenile Justice Advisory Board Chair
by Nancy Pfaadt, Chair, Kentucky Juvenile Justice Advisory Board
Many things came to mind when I was asked to write about the upcoming CJJ Southern Region Conference, but it was the kids we serve in Kentucky who were at the forefront of my thoughts. I have worked in Substance Abuse Prevention my entire career and strive to ensure youth in the juvenile justice system are "served," not just monitored, locked up, or a statistic. All the information we have about brain development tells us that kids don't have the same cognitive functions of adults. Yes, we need to hold them accountable. But at the same time we need to provide them with the necessary services to develop the skills that will allow them to succeed. Then we have to afford them opportunities to use those skills.
I have sat on the Juvenile Justice Advisory Board (JJAB) in Kentucky since its inception in the late 1990's. It has been rewarding to see our youth subcommittee take an active role, to see our adult members put aside personal agendas and work for a common goal, and to see our Department of Juvenile Justice staff work diligently-- making the goals of the JJAB a reality.
We are currently working in Kentucky with a team from the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative (JDAI) to transform Kentucky's juvenile justice system for the youth of the Commonwealth and their families. Over the past 15+ years I have seen agencies begin to work together to address the needs of individual youth, putting aside turf issues in the best interest of the youth. The funding and support of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has been a guiding factor in our work here in Kentucky.
The Coalition for Juvenile Justice has also been a great resource for our SAG by providing support, guidance, leadership, and training as we have worked to improve the Commonwealth's juvenile justice system. Thanks to a partnership with the National Partnership for Juvenile Services (NPJS), Kentucky will host the CJJ Southern Region Conference, "Promoting Positive Mental, Physical and Social Adolescence Health," in conjunction with NPJS's 19th annual National Symposium on Juvenile Services in Louisville, KY. The CJJ Southern Region Conference will run October 20-21 and be immediately followed by the National Symposium from October 22-24 at the Galt House. The Conference theme and the collaborative efforts between CJJ, NPJS, and the state of Kentucky are evidence of our shared desire to serve the "whole" youth. Learn more about the Southern Region Conference on the CJJ and NPJS websites.
Back to Top
|
|
CJJ Regions and Committees
CJJ Committee and Region News Government Relations Committee Seeking Three Core Members CJJ's Government Relations Committee has restructured. Under the new structure, there is a core group of members granted the authority to vote. The committee still needs to fill three of these positions: one to be appointed by the National Chair and two youth members to be appointed by the National Youth Chair. Core members are asked to attend a monthly meeting and vote when necessary. See a more detailed description of the responsibilities here. If you are interested in serving as a core member, please contact Alexandra Staropoli, Esq. at [email protected]. National Youth Committee Youth Leadership Webinar Series - Coming Soon! As a follow up to the 2013 Youth Summit, CJJ will be kicking off a Youth Leadership Webinar Series this fall. The series will elaborate on some of the topics discussed at the Youth Summit: juvenile justice 101, advocacy 101, organizing, DMC, school-to-prison pipeline, and will also incorporate some new topics: youth and the arts, LGBTQ youth in the juvenile justice system, and youth charged as adults. The webinar schedule is coming soon  and will be posted on our website and shared among our networks. If you are interested in participating in or proposing a webinar, please contact Alexandra Staropoli, Esq. at [email protected]. National Youth Committee Have Your Voice Heard - Write a Letter Today! In anticipation of CJJ's 30th Anniversary in 2014, CJJ's National Youth Committee is collecting letters from young juvenile justice advocates to President Obama, OJJDP Administrator Listenbee, and/or Members of Congress. The letters will ultimately be compiled into collection a single compilation of letters to policymakers and government officials. There are no strict parameters for the letters. They should reflect young advocates' thoughts, ideas, and hopes for the future of juvenile justice and our nation's youth. While some young advocates may choose to share their personal story about their involvement with the justice system, others may focus strictly on policy, or suggestions for youth engagement - each letter will be unique. You do NOT need to be a CJJ member to submit a letter. Feel free to disseminate this request to young juvenile justice advocates outside of the CJJ network. The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2013. Please direct your submissions and questions to Alexandra Staropoli, Esq. at [email protected]. Back to Top |
|
SOS Project News
National Standards for the Care of Youth Charged with Status Offenses
CJJ's Interim Executive Director, Marie Williams will present on the National Standards for the Care of Youth Charged with Status Offenses at three separate venues this fall. The presentations are part of an ongoing effort to build momentum around the elimination of the valid court order exception to the DSO core requirement and to promote policies and practices that improve outcomes for status offenses. On September 20, 2013, Marie will sit on a panel during the Western Juvenile Defender Center Training along with Casey Trupin of Columbia Legal Services (Seattle, WA), Jana Heyd of the SCRAP Division of the King County Department of Public Defense and Nicole Pittman of the Juvenile Law Center (Philadelphia, PA). On October 1, 2013 she will participate as a panelist at the National Symposium of Court Leadership Organizing to Strategize for Juvenile Justice Reform, supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's Models for Change Initiative. On November 8, she will be a panelist at the National Juvenile Defender Center Leadership Summit. These panel presentations are part of CJJ's big push to spread the word about the imminent release of the National Standards this fall and to obtain the support of juvenile justice practitioners and policymakers for the elimination of confinement as an option for non-delinquent youth.
For a more information, or a copy of the National Standards, please send your request to [email protected].
Judge Michael Nash to be Honored with Angel of Peace Award
Judge Michael Nash, President of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) and member of the CJJ Judicial Advisory Group will be honored by the Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles on September 26, 2013 at Angel of Peace Awards at the California Endowment. Judge Nash, who presented at the CJJ Annual Conference this past spring, is nationally recognized for his work in juvenile justice. As a juvenile court judge, Judge Nash has played a role in bringing numerous changes to the juvenile courts in Los Angeles. Some of these include the creation of drug courts in both Delinquency and Dependency Courts; development of psychotropic medication protocols for juvenile court youth; development of protocols to foster communication and coordination between Dependency and Delinquency Courts; projects to enhance and define the role of attorneys in juvenile court and more. CJJ congratulates Judge Nash on this well-deserved honor.
Back to Top
|
Models for Change Connections
Each issue, Models for Change Connections is pleased to highlight the latest news and innovations and CJJ member participation in the Models for Change Initiative of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Join Us for a Webinar on Public-Private Partnership for Juvenile Justice Reform
 Please join CJJ for a webinar on the Public-Private Partnership for Juvenile Justice Reform on September 26 at 2:00 PM EDT. Robert Schwartz, Co-founder and Executive Director of the Juvenile Law Center, will discuss the unique partnership between the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Committee (JJDPC), Pennsylvania's state advisory group (SAG). At a time when federal and state funds for juvenile justice were being slashed, this partnership overcame this challenge to produce significant improvement in Pennsylvania's juvenile justice system. This webinar will examine how the extraordinary collaboration produced dramatic and lasting results for the youth of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and how efforts like this can be imitated in other jurisdictions. Register for the webinar and learn more about this partnership by reading the Pennsylvania and MacArthur's Models for Change: The Story of a Successful Public-Private Partnership monograph.
Getting Adults on Board for Alternatives to  Locking Up Kids
The John D. and Catherine MacArthur Foundation recently dedicated $15 million dollars to the Models for Change initiative to create four new Resource Centers. The Partnership will provide judges, prosecutors, defenders, policymakers, advocates, probation officers, and mental health and social service agencies with much needed technical assistance, trainings, tools, and resources to help advance juvenile justice reform across the country. Susan Ferris of the Center for Public Integrity recently wrote about this exciting new project entitled, Getting Adults on Board for Alternatives to Locking Up Kids.
Back to Top
|
National Juvenile Justice Network News
NJJN's Washington Member Transforms School Discipline for Kids
After releasing its Reclaiming Students report in December 2012, TeamChild, NJJN's member in Washington State, jumped into the legislative session with some key partners to transform school discipline for kids. H.B. 5946, which the governor signed into law on June 30, 2013, introduces crucial changes to Washington's school discipline policy that end indefinite school exclusions, closely monitor provision of educational services during periods of exclusion, and formalize collection of discipline data, among other reforms. Read more on NJJN's website.
Delaware Revises Mandatory Registration Policy for Youth Convicted of Sexual Offenses
This July, thanks in part to the Delaware Center for Justice (DCJ) -- an NJJN member -- the Delaware legislature passed H.B. 182, a bill that will give judges discretion regarding the registration of youth convicted of sexual offenses. Previously, adjudication for sexual offenses meant automatic, mandatory registration. Now, judges may determine on a case-by-case basis whether a youth under the age of 14, or between 14 and 17 and convicted of a non-violent offense, will be required to register. H.B. 182 was signed into law on July 18, 2013, and is retroactive. Read the full article.
NJJN Policy Platform: Youth in the Adult System
We all recognize that young people are different from adults. Legal and scientific communities are consistently asserting that young people cannot be held accountable for their actions in the same way as adults. Data has showed confining youth to adult facilities causes physical and emotional harm. The evidence also points to the long-term negative consequences of having an adult criminal record. It is past time to reform our policies that place youth in the adult system. NJJN's new policy platform makes concrete recommendations to help you create and support policies to keep youth out of the adult system. Download the policy platform here.
Back to Top
|
|
|
|
|
| Upcoming Events |
Reframing Human Services: A Two-Part Webinar Series and Call to Action
 Register today for the National Human Services Assembly's webinar series to learn more about how you can become a part of a major new initiative to reframe how the general public and policymakers understand our sector. The next webinar, Mapping the Gaps between Expert and Public Understandings of Human Services, will be on September 25 at 2:00pm ET. Presenters will include: Susan Nall Bales, President of the Frameworks Institute and Dr. Nathaniel Kendall-Taylor, Director of Research at the Frameworks Institute. This webinar will present the preliminary findings from the Frameworks Institute report, "Handed to Them on a Plate: Mapping the Gaps Between Expert and Public Understandings of Human Services." It will focus on three main elements of the report: the findings from research conducted to identify the "core story" of the human services sector, analysis of the "gaps" identified in how the general public understands the values and metaphors embedded in the story, and discussion of potential strategies to "reframe" how the sector presents itself to the public and policymakers. Click here to register.
Brief Strategic Family Therapy Webinar
Stephen (Kris) Denny will present a webinar training on Brief Strategic Family Therapy on September 20 at 9am PST. This training will serve as an introduction to Brief Strategic Family Therapy's philosophy and theoretical foundations. Attendees will learn about BSFT's history, diagnostic system and engagement process. BSFT training and implementation will also be discussed. Register Now.
Back to Top
|
Resources
|
Mental Health and Juvenile Justice Collaborative for Change
 The National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice (NCMHJJ) will coordinate the Mental Health and Juvenile Justice Collaborative for Change: A Training, Technical Assistance, and Education Center as part of the new Models for Change Resource Center Partnership. The Collaborative for Change will offer a resource center; a staffed Help Desk; conference calls, webinars, and web casts with national experts; and on site assistance and consultation.
Public Health and Public Safety Collaborations are Key to Preventing Youth Gang
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC)' Division of Violence Prevention and the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) released Changing Course: Preventing Gang Membership, a book that helps communities halt the devastating effects of gangs on kids, families, and communities. The book's aim is to inform community leaders, law enforcement officials, teachers, and community-services providers about gang prevention research and best practices.
Family Centered Treatment
The Institute for Family Centered Services is the developer and flagship provider of Family Centered Treatment (FCT), an approach already in use in Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, and soon to be in Indiana. FCT is an evidence-based family preservation model of home-based treatment. Its origins derive from practitioners' efforts to find simple, practical, and common sense solutions for families faced with disruption or dissolution of their family due to both external and internal stressors and circumstances or forced removal of their children from the home due to their delinquent behavior. FCT is provided for families of specialty populations of all ages involved in Mental Health, Substance Abuse, Developmental Disabilities, Juvenile Justice and crossover youth.
Distinctive aspects of the model are:
- Emotionally focused trauma treatment for individuals and families unable to integrate skills or adjustments in parenting or their relationships due to traumatic events;
- A Valuing Changes phase focused upon enabling sustainable change that is prompted by the FCT therapist's adjustment in their clinical approach; this adjustment is designed to enable the family's identification of changes made that are of value to them and that they want to continue after treatment ends; and
- A Generalization phase that capitalizes on the family's strengths via a power of giving activity.
For more information, and an overview of the model, read this paper.
Back to Top
|
CJJ in the News
|
District's Juvenile Justice Agency Receives National Award for Public Safety Innovation
 In August, The National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA) recognized the DC Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS) for a key component of its juvenile justice reform, DC YouthLink. The DC YouthLink initiative won the award for Outstanding Criminal Justice Program at the NCJA National Forum on Criminal Justice in Chicago. The award is based on DC's achievements in improving the life chances for its court-involved youth and reducing the likelihood of their re-offending.
Models for Change Champion Starcia Ague Featured in Documentary
Starcia Ague, Program Coordinator at the University of Washington and Models for Change Champion Awardee was featured in a documentary on TVW. The documentary "Starcia" is an in-depth look at her life and how she overcame involvement with the justice system and became a valued member of Washington society. The documentary aired in early September and is open to the public now.
Wisconsin Returns 17 year olds to Juvenile Court
On September 5, Wisconsin State Senators and Representatives introduced a bill that would return first-time, non-violent 17 year old offenders to the juvenile court system, rather than the adult criminal justice system. Read more in the Wisconsin State Journal, 2nd Chance Alliance's Press Release, and Wisconsin Public Radio News. Wisconsin is one of only 11 states that try 17-year-olds as adults.
Back to Top
|
| Share your News and Feedback with CJJ! |
CJJ invites you to share news from your SAG, state or region! Please submit items by email to [email protected]. Inclusion and editing of submissions are subject to CJJ editorial guidelines.
The Juvenile Justice Monitor is brought to you by staff and volunteer leaders of CJJ, and supported by membership fees paid by CJJ's State Advisory Group Members, Members at Large and Allies. We are grateful to all for their ongoing support.
|
| Contact Information |
Coalition for Juvenile Justice
1319 F Street NW, Suite 402, Washington, DC 20004
202-467-0864
www.juvjustice.org
|
|
|
|
|
