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April 2012
CJJ Leadership News
From Susan Kamp, CJJ National Chair:
Please Join us for CJJ’s Annual Conference this June!
The Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) is busy planning its annual conference, to be held June 22-24, 2012, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Bethesda, MD, right outside of Washington, D.C. The conference also includes Hill Day, on June 21, 2012. The Conference Planning Committee, chaired by Roger Jarjoura (IN), is working hard with Jessica Russell Murphy and the rest of the CJJ staff to put together another exemplary conference that will provide State Advisory Group members, state staff, CJJ members, allies and many others with important training and information sharing opportunities.
This year’s theme, “Improving Justice Outcomes for Youth and Families: Uniting Science, Policy and Practice,” will focus on innovations and improvements that prevent and reduce court contact and involvement for children, youth and families. Click here for a draft agenda, and stay tuned for detailed information on workshop and skill-building training sessions in coming weeks.
A Chance to Make a Difference: Become a CJJ Board Member!
On Sunday, June 24, CJJ’s Council of State Advisory Groups will convene for its annual meeting and board elections. Nominations are now being accepted for new and continuing members of the executive board for the following positions: Treasurer/Secretary, Ethnic and Cultural Diversity Chair, National Youth Chair, Regional Chairs for all four regions, and National Juvenile Justice Specialist Representative.
Please consider becoming involved in CJJ by running for an executive board position. Nomination information is available here. Deadline for nominations is May 25, 2012. Please feel free to be in touch with me if you have any questions at skamp@sover.net. I look forward to seeing many of you this June!
Announcing CJJ's Assistant Director for Training and Technical Assistance
We are pleased to announce CJJ's new Assistant Director for Training and Technical Assistance, Franklin Cruz. Franklin brings many years of experience in training, technical assistance and system reform working on behalf of vulnerable populations with criminal and juvenile justice practitioners and educators. Franklin can be reached at cruz@juvjustice.org and 202-467-0864, ext. 125. Welcome, Franklin!
CJJ Government Relations Alert
Call to Action: Your Voice Needed to Preserve Federal Juvenile Justice Funding
On April 26, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees finalized their recommendations for the FY 2013 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) bills, which include proposed funding levels for federal juvenile justice programs. Read more.
CJJ Releases New Resource to Help Preserve and Restore Juvenile Justice Funding
With the incredible help of JJDPA state staff, CJJ has developed a new resource designed to help CJJ members and allies better communicate the impact of federal investments, and what is at stake when cuts are made to federal juvenile justice programs. “Profiles of Federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Funding” are brief bulletins that go deeper than the CJJ Federal Funding Fact Sheet with more detail on how particular states are leveraging federal investments to improve youth outcomes and improve community in particular jurisdictions.
Current completed profiles focus on California; Fairfax County, VA; Maryland; Philadelphia, PA; and Vermont. Additional profiles will focus on Illinois, Iowa, Nevada and Wisconsin. Please use these profiles to highlight the effectiveness of federal juvenile justice funding. Read more.
Models for Change Connections
Models for Change Connections is a monthly column, bringing SAGs and other CJJ members the latest news and innovations from the Models for Change Initiative of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Low-Cost Interventions Can Make a Big Difference, Illinois Study Suggests
A recent knowledge brief from Models for Change, “How Can We Know If Juvenile Justice Reforms Are Worth the Cost?” suggests that even incremental positive changes, such as introducing inexpensive behavioral treatments in a juvenile facility, can translate into major cost savings and benefits for youth, families and the community as a whole.
Thanks to innovative work in Cook County, Illinois, juveniles detained in Chicago’s Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (JTDC) are learning to stay out of trouble and get back on track. Since 2007, Earl Dunlap, Transitional Administrator for JTDC, has promoted the use of group-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in this facility. This is part of a major reform of this facility and its climate, following a long history of abuse.
Funded by the MacArthur Foundation’s Models for Change, a research team from the University of Chicago and Northwestern University are analyzing data from 1,518 youth, approximately half of whom received CBT and half of whom did not.
Read More
CJJ Conference and Training News
Please join us for the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) 2012 Annual Conference, Council of SAGs' Meeting and Hill Day, “Improving Justice Outcomes for Youth and Families: Uniting Science, Policy and Practice,” June 22-24, 2012, Bethesda, MD (right outside of Washington, D.C.). The conference also includes Hill Day on June 21, 2012.
Registration is now open! Registration fees are $225 for CJJ members and $295/person for non-members. CJJ Conference registration fees fully comply with all Office of Justice Programs (OJP) policies and guidelines regarding the use of SAG and federal funds. Registration fees will not be used for the purchase or support of conference food and beverage.
Click here for the latest draft agenda. Important updates and conference highlights include:
- NEW! Keynote Speaker Melodee Hanes, Acting Director, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), will kick-off the opening session on the afternoon of Friday, June 22.
- NEW! Enhancing Youth SAG Involvement and New SAG Member Training Sessions on Friday, June 22.
- Canceled: The Office for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention’s (OJJDP) pre-conference training for DMC Coordinators and Compliance Monitors that was scheduled for Thursday, June 21, has been canceled. Many jurisdictions were unable to justify a one-day meeting in Washington. OJJDP will continue to gather information from you to better inform planning for future training opportunities.
- State Juvenile Justice Specialists, DMC Coordinators and Leadership Committees Meetings on Friday, June 22.
- CJJ Regional Meetings and multiple concurrent workshop sessions on Saturday, June 23.
- CJJ Annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday, June 23.
- CJJ Council of SAGs’ Meeting and elections on Sunday, June 24.
Click here for more information, or contact Jessica Russell Murphy, CJJ's Conference and Member Services Manager with any questions: 202-467-0864, ext. 102 or murphy@juvjustice.org. We hope to see many of you in Washington, D.C., this June!
State Training and Technical Assistance Center (STTAC) Launched!
American Institutes for Research (AIR), National Center for Juvenile Justice (NCJJ), and CJJ have partnered to launch the State Training and Technical Assistance Center (STTAC) for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). STTAC aims to support and enhance the work of states and territories with Title II Formula Grants and Juvenile Accountability Block Grant.
What does this mean for you? As a juvenile justice leader, you now have expanded access to high-quality, proactive, and responsive training and technical assistance to support and enhance your work in planning, establishing, operating, coordinating, and evaluating juvenile justice reforms and system improvement efforts. Given cuts in federal funding, now more than ever, we know that you and your peers in the field can benefit from expert assistance tailored to your community’s strengths, needs and challenges.
Upcoming webinars: Registration is open (and free) for OJJDP's "Sustainability in Times of Scarce Resources" webinars, to be held May 7, 4:30-6 pm EDT, and again on May 10, 11:30 am-1 pm EDT. CJJ is proud to be involved in these webinars as part of the STTAC partnership.
For more information on how STTAC can help your state or territory, please contact us at STTAC@air.org. With questions, please also contact Franklin Cruz at CJJ: 202-467-0864, ext. 125, or cruz@juvjustice.org.
CJJ Committee and Regional News
- Longtime CJJ Member and Juvenile Justice Leader Honored: Congratulations to Linda Hayes, chief deputy secretary of the North Carolina Division of Juvenile Justice and a longtime CJJ leader for receiving the Razor Walker Award for her lifelong commitment and dedication to serve North Carolina’s children and youths. Read more.
- Latest on Reclaiming Futures in North Carolina: Last September, North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue and the North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention announced a private-public partnership to expand Reclaiming Futures across the state. Click here to read the latest North Carolina's Reclaiming Futures Newsletter.
Resources and Information of Note
- Longtime CJJ member and ally Judge Steven C. Teske (GA) released a new book, "Reform Juvenile Justice Now: A Judge's Timely Advice for Drastic System Change," published by the Center for Sustainable Journalism Kennesaw State University. In his new book, Judge Teske, a juvenile court judge and national thought leader on juvenile justice reform, lays out an impressive plan for change, including (1) Developing Alternatives to Incarceration (2) Ending Zero Tolerance in Schools (3) Being Smart about Bullying (4) Ending the Jailing of Kids Who Make Us Mad (5)Taking a Stand Against the Politics of Fear and (6) Demanding Parental Involvement.
- The National Youth Screening and Assessment Project (NYSAP) is inviting applications from juvenile justice jurisdictions to participate in the Risk and Mental Health Screening and Assessment of Youth (RAMSAY) Technical Assistance Demonstration Project, a part of a broader partnership between OJJDP and the MacArthur Foundation to improve outcomes for youth involved in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems. Applications are due by May 9, 2012.
- The Center for Juvenile Justice Reform at Georgetown University, in partnership with the Juvenile Law Center, announced a new Information Sharing Certificate Program, to be held October 1-4, 2012, in Washington, D.C. The program is designed to enable leaders in the juvenile justice, child welfare, education, behavioral health and other child serving fields to overcome information sharing challenges that prevent the communication and coordination that is necessary to more fully serve youth known across multiple systems of care. Applications deadline: June 28, 2012. Read more.
National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN) News
- Pennsylvania Requires Legal Representation for Youth at Delinquency Hearings: In Pennsylvania's latest effort to prevent a repeat of the Luzerne County "kids-for-cash" scandal, a new state law mandates legal representation for youth during delinquency hearings. Read more.
- Ohio Supreme Court: Automatic Sex Offender Registration and Notification of Juveniles Is Unconstitutional: On April 3, 2012, the Ohio Supreme Court found the state's statute requiring automatic sex offender registration and notification for juveniles unconstitutional and counter to the goal of the juvenile justice system -- that is, rehabilitation. Read more.
In the News
- On April 19, 2012, The Detroit Free Press published “Be Part of the Solution to Violence Against Children,” an op-ed by Pennsylvania SAG member, FACJJ member and 2012 Champion for Change Robert Listenbee Jr., Chief of the Juvenile Unit of the Defender Association of Philadelphia. Listenbee, who co-chairs the Attorney General's National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence, calls for solutions to violence against children: “We need the faith community, businesses and all levels of government to be a part of the solution.” Read more.
- The Denver Post reported (“Hickenlooper Signs "Direct File" Into Law, Limiting Adult Charges for Juveniles,” April 20, 2012) on a bill signed by the Governor of Colorado that aims to limit the number of youth charged as adults by requiring judicial review of cases in which prosecutors seek to charge youth as adults. The new law also raised the minimum age of charging youth as adult from 14 to 16, and limits the types of offenses for which youth can be charged as adults. Read more.
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