Juvenile Re-entry Conference: Re-cap
Posted by Louise Packard on Tue, Mar 02, 2010
On February 11, over 150 people attended a conference on juvenile re-entry that the Foundation hosted at Trinity with partner
Citizens for Juvenile Justice. We are passionate about this issue:
how can we help youth who have been locked up in residential settings re-enter the community in a way that sets them on a positive path? The Foundation is working on this issue at both a program level (
Street Potential) and a systems level (building community and commitment through efforts like this conference).
Although our keynote speaker got stuck in the snow in Washington D.C., we had three lively panel discussions on mental health issues, education and vocational programming and building community connections. Feedback on the evaluations was positive, and exposed a hunger on the part of those working in this area to feel more connected to and supported by each other.
Issues that emerged included the need for:
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stronger mentoring programs (and training)
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deeper family engagement
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programs to support those aging out of services
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patience on the part of the funding community to move the emphasis to long-term engagement/outcomes (vs. expecting short-term miracles)
Let's help continue the conversation and learning from this year's juvenile re-entry conference. Thanks to everyone for your participation, your passion, and your support!