Juvenile Justice

Teacher and Administrator Guide for Preventing Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime
While parents are the first lines of defense when it comes to helping children grow up to become responsible, productive, happy adults, they’re not the only ones who play a role in helping kids walk the right path. Teachers and administrators can help to support the tough work parents are doing at home to help kids achieve and reduce rates of juvenile delinquency.
Source:  MSW Degrees

Dear Colleague Letter – US Department of Justice & US Department of Education
A Dear Colleague Letter on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act for Students with Disabilities in Correctional Facilities from Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to clarify state and public agency obligations to ensure the provision of a free appropriate public education to eligible students with disabilities in correctional facilities.
Source:  US Department of Justice & US Department of Education, December 8, 2014

Dear Colleague Letter – US Department of Education
A Dear Colleague Letter on Access to Federal Pell Grants for Students in Juvenile Justice Facilities clarifies the extent to which confined youth may be eligible for the Federal Pell Grant Program, and is accompanied by a fact sheet for students and a detailed set of questions and answers for institutions of higher education.
Source:  US Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, December 8, 2014

Dear Colleague Letter – US Department of Education
A Dear Colleague Letter on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act for Students with Disabilities in Correctional Facilities from Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to clarify state and public agency obligations to ensure the provision of a free appropriate public education to eligible students with disabilities in correctional facilities.
Source:  US Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, December 5, 2014

Guiding Principles for Providing High-Quality Education in Juvenile Justice Secure Care Settings
A set of Guiding Principles for Providing High-Quality Education in Juvenile Justice Secure Care Settings, outlines five principles and supporting core activities to improve education practices, or implement new ones. Authored jointly by the U.S. departments of Education and Justice, the guide is meant to help agencies and facilities serving youth in correctional education provide education services comparable to those available to students in community schools.
Source:  US Department of Education & US Department of Justice, December 2014

Letter to Chief State School Officers and State Attorney Generals
Letter discusses the importance of providing high-quality correctional education.
Source:  US Department of Education & US Department of Justice, December 2014

Toolkit for Youth with Disabilities in Juvenile Corrections
This web-based toolkit from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) at the U.S. Department of Education can help State educational agencies, educators, families, facilities, and community agencies to better support and improve the long-term outcomes for youth with disabilities in juvenile correctional facilities. The toolkit includes topical briefs, family engagement strategies, and resources that summarize evidence- and research-based practices in juvenile corrections.
Source:  US Department of Education

Transition Toolkit 3.0:  Meeting the Educational Needs of Youth Exposed to the Juvenile Justice System
The toolkit brings together strategies, existing practices, and updated resources to enable administrators and practitioners with proven, high-quality transition services for students moving in, through, and out of the juvenile justice system. The toolkit includes information at various phases through the transition process from entry to release, as well as best practices, legal considerations, and various opportunities for justice-impacted youth after exiting a juvenile justice facility. It also includes guiding principles for effectively supporting justice-impacted youth, specific practices for implementing those guiding principles, and structured guidance for practitioners as they implement these new practices.
Source:  The National Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Neglected or Delinquent Children and Youth

You Got This – Educational Pathways for Youth Transitioning from Juvenile Justice Facilities
The guide is designed to empower justice-impacted youth with the information, tips, and resources they need to plan for their future after leaving a facility. The packet provides checklists, guidance, lists of resources, and templates of commonly required documents to help students prepare for successful re-entry.
Source:  US Department of Education

Expunging Juvenile Records: Misconceptions, Collateral Consequences, and Emerging Practices 
This bulletin discusses common misconceptions surrounding expungement and clarifies the differences between expungement, sealing, and confidentiality as methods for destroying or limiting access to juvenile records. It also provides information about the collateral consequences of juvenile records as well as federal, state, and local emerging practices.

Guiding Principles for Providing High-Quality Education in Juvenile Justice Secure Settings 
This report provides five guiding principles recommended by the federal government to provide high-quality education to youth in juvenile justice secure settings. The suggested principles create environments conducive to teaching, learning, social-emotional supports, and positive educational outcomes for youth that lessen likelihood to reenter the justice system.

Improving Outcomes for Youth with Disabilities in Juvenile Corrections: Transition and Reentry 
This source summarizes best practices for helping youth with disabilities transition out of the juvenile justice system and reenter their communities. Included within the document are countless resources and websites with information for previously incarcerated youth and youth with disabilities, parents and families of incarcerated youth, as well as educators and other after-care community partners.

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Legislation
Visit this webpage to view the juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act Reauthorization of 2018, the Redline Version: Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act as Amended by the Juvenile Justice Reform Act of 2018, and related legislation. These sources enacted by Congress have enabled the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to support efforts at the local, state, and federal levels to improve the juvenile justice system and prevent delinquency before it happens.

Model Programs Guide: Practices 
This guide presents evidence-based juvenile justice and youth prevention, intervention, and reentry programs. Each program is rated either effective, promising, or no effect. Users can find 18 Delinquency Prevention programs (e.g., arts-based programs and therapies, jobs and workforce development, school-based programming, violence prevention) and 13 programs focused on Detention, Confinement, and Supervision (e.g., reentry/aftercare, diversion, residential treatment centers, comprehensive/wrap around services). It also contains information on other programming in varying content areas.

National Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk (NDTAC)
This website serves as an information hub, technical assistance center, resource for program evaluation and data reporting, and a facilitator of information and peer-to-peer learning in relation to educational programming for youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at-risk of entering the juvenile justice system. Users can access webinars and conferences on the site and explore resources for parents, families, and service providers for neglected or delinquent youth.

Protecting the Civil Rights of Students in the Juvenile Justice System 
This publication highlights some of the disparities youth involved in the juvenile justice system face while in detainment and/or out-of-home placement. Gender and racial disparities within justice facilities are discussed, as are disparate educational programming, teacher quality, and information on the rights of youth in these facilities and the protections they are entitled to under the Office of Civil Rights.

Reentry Starts Here: A Guide for Youth in Long-Term Juvenile Corrections and Treatment Programs 
This youth-centered toolkit equips incarcerated minors with a guide on what to expect upon reentry and what footwork they should be doing while still in a juvenile correctional facility and well after. The guide is organized into two sections: planning for reentry while in placement and successful reentry into your community. Included are descriptions regarding common barriers youth may encounter upon reentry as well as tools and action steps to help them overcome those barriers.

Rights of Juveniles
This webpage regarding the Special Litigation Section of the U.S. Department of Justice is a resource for those who suspect maltreatment or unnecessary confinement in a juvenile justice facility. The page offers phone numbers and email contact information for community Special Litigation Section partners where information can be received regarding a juvenile justice case or concern.

Vulnerable Population: Incarcerated Youth 
For youth, parents, community members, or practitioners who need a starting point to familiarize themselves with the juvenile justice system and processes, this fact sheet may be a good place to start. It provides basic definitions and fast facts as well as links to various government reports and publications focusing on the juvenile justice system.