Corrections_Today_November_December_2020_Vol.82_No.6

Juvenile Justice News

CJJA understands and believes that the key to successfully improv - ing secure and non-secure youth residential facilities, is transforming agency and facility culture. As such, a jurisdiction’s transformation strate - gy must include engaging staff in the process and improving the wellbeing of staff, including psychological and physical wellbeing. Furthermore, it is critical that juvenile justice agencies hire staff who are a good fit for this line of work and whose beliefs align with the agency’s mission to effec - tively serve youth and families. Staff must also be provided with sufficient and effective training and, most im - portantly, the opportunities to further develop their professional skills. CJJA understands and believes that the key to successfully improving secure and non-secure youth residential facilities, is transforming agency and facility culture.

developmentally appropriate, trauma-informed, trauma-re- sponsive, and strengths-based. –– Staff training and development must include adolescent brain development, gender respon - sivity, and cultural awareness training. –– Training and coaching that sup - ports staff in developing healthy professional relationships with the youth they serve. –– Ensuring fair and equitable treatment of youth. –– Implementing nationally rec - ognized crisis prevention and intervention models. –– Strong coordination and inte- gration with communities. –– An established system of con - tinuous quality improvement. Transforming to an ideal system requires mindful consideration of the existing purpose of these facili - ties and the operational practices to better impact youth, families, staff and local communities. Using a holistic approach for improving the continuum of care and services will strengthen positive outcomes for juvenile justice youth. CJJA will submit a position statement on the key principles for transforming juvenile justice to its members for voting and approval in February 2021. Once approved, the position paper will be on our website at http://cjja.net/publications/.

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involvement except when necessary to ensure community safety will increase positive outcomes for youth and families. In addition, CJJA calls upon juvenile justice systems to adopt and implement principles of care as described below. The most effective juvenile justice agencies understand: –– Staff development starts with promoting wellness and work- life balance. –– Leaders must promote health and wellness of staff; provide a foundation of safety; and encourage change opportunities for youth. –– Targeted mental health assess - ments and diagnostics must be used to evaluate risk and ef - fectively address root causes of negative behaviors. –– Assessment and treatment planning must be youth and family-centered. –– Creating safe, therapeutic, and reparative environments will improve outcomes. –– Implementing programming that is research-based and outcome-focused. –– Using approaches when working with youth that are

Michael Dempsey is the executive director of the Council of Juvenile Justice Administrators.

CJJA challenges jurisdictions to adopt principles that support keeping youth in their communities when - ever possible. Reducing formal legal

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