Youth in Custody Practice Model

Informed by research on “what works” in serving youth in custody, as well as professional standards and the field’s preeminent thinking on best practices, the Youth in Custody Practice Model (YICPM) initiative is designed to assist state and county juvenile correctional agencies and facility providers in implementing a comprehensive and effective service delivery approach.

Utilizing the YICPM monograph as a roadmap, the Council of Juvenile Correctional Administrators (CJCA), the Center for Juvenile Justice Reform at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy (CJJR), and a team of consultants provide participating agencies with 18 months of Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) to align core, research-based principles with everyday practice, and achieve more positive outcomes for youth, families, staff and communities.

The Youth in Custody Practice Model offers guidance on essential practices in four key areas:

1. Case planning;
2. Facility-based services (e.g., education, behavioral health, behavior management, rehabilitative programming);
3. Transition/reentry; and
4. Community-based services.

The delineated practices stem from the view that services and approaches for post-dispositional youth and their families should be: research-based; developmentally appropriate; family-centered; individually focused and predicated on validated assessments; strength-based; trauma-informed; data-informed and outcome-driven; culturally responsive; and coordinated.

With support and guidance from CJCA and CJJR, the YICPM was authored by a team of national juvenile justice experts, including: Kelly Dedel, Ph.D.; Monique Marrow, Ph.D.; Fariborz Pakseresht; and Michael Umpierre, Esq.

To date, two cohorts of jurisdictions have participated in the YICPM initiative.  The most current cohort includes the San Diego County Probation Department, Los Angeles County Probation Department and Connecticut Judicial Branch – Court Support Services Division.  The first cohort sites to implement the model comprised of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, Massachusetts Department of Youth Services, StarrVista, Inc. (Wayne County, Michigan) and Texas Juvenile Justice Department (see testimonials below).

Overview of the TTA Provided
Goals, Expected Outcomes & Evaluation
Why Apply & What to Expect
How to Apply
Testimonials

 

Overview of the TTA Provided

Intensive training and technical assistance will be provided to sites to support their efforts to implement the YICPM. Each site’s 18 months of training and technical assistance is a customized package of services within the general framework of the overall initiative. The training and technical assistance supports sites in:

• Assessing current practices compared to the comprehensive, research-based blueprint presented by the YICPM;
• Developing a customized action plan to implement desired policy and practice improvements and achieve measurable objectives;
• Training staff on the research undergirding the YICPM and the strategies listed therein;
• Building and broadening a coalition of support for the system improvements through an implementation team and a key stakeholders group;
• Creating strategies designed to achieve long-term sustainability of the efforts, such as policy development, training, quality assurance and performance measurement; and
• Measuring the effectiveness of the training and technical assistance in changing practices and achieving positive outcomes.

National experts with experience in the youth in custody arena deliver the training and technical assistance. The lead consultants providing training and technical assistance includes:

• Shay Bilchik (Center for Juvenile Justice Reform);
• Mike Dempsey (Council of Juvenile Correctional Administrators);
• Kelly Dedel (One in 37 Research, Inc.);
• Michael Umpierre (Center for Juvenile Justice Reform); and
• Tim Decker (Consultant; Former Director of Missouri Department of Social Services’ Division of Youth Services and Children’s Division).

Additionally, the consulting team includes a number of specialized subject matter experts available to assist sites in targeted areas requiring further attention. The lead consultants will work with each site to identify areas of interest for this specialized consultation.

 

Goals, Expected Outcomes & Evaluation

The Youth in Custody Practice Model initiative is designed to help systems achieve four primary goals:

1. Promote safe, fair and healthy environments for youth, staff, and families;
2. Prepare, equip, empower and support staff to provide effective services;
3. Increase positive youth and family experiences and outcomes; and
4. Enhance community safety.

The table below lists some of the anticipated outcomes associated with each of the YICPM’s four goals. The extent to which they will apply to a specific site depends on the areas of need identified by the assessment process and targeted by the action plan.

The training and technical assistance package includes a strong data collection component. Dr. Jennifer Woolard, Associate Professor of Psychology at Georgetown University and Co-Director of the University’s Graduate Program in Developmental Science, and her staff will provide training and technical assistance to sites to support data collection, analysis, and report writing related to the YICPM implementation. This effort is designed to measure the impact the YICPM has on changing practices and achieving positive outcomes.

 

Why Apply & What to Expect

The strongest applicants will have a history of juvenile justice reforms and a high-level commitment to quality system and practice improvements at the agency and facility levels, including through the use of policy development, training, quality assurance and performance measurement. They will also have a willingness to focus YICPM implementation in up to three facilities, with the goal of expanding implementation to other facilities in the jurisdiction.

Implementing the YICPM will require a significant commitment from the participating sites. At a minimum, participating organizations should be prepared to:

• Engage in monthly conference calls;
• Participate in at least six site visits (including covering the costs associated with convening team members to each visit, as well as meeting preparation and follow-up);
• Communicate regularly with the consulting team;
• Collect data over a sustained period of time through an existing information system; and
• Coordinate the various implementation groups (e.g., implementation team, workgroups, guiding coalition).

Sites will be expected to contribute $205,000 to support the training and technical assistance. This fee must be paid in full prior to commencement of the training and technical assistance. This fee does not include the cost of local staff time devoted to this project. It is recommended that 50% of a staff person’s time be dedicated to managing and coordinating this project with the consultant team.

 

How to Apply

CJJR and CJCA are not currently accepting applications for the Youth in Custody Practice Model initiative. Please check back in the summer of 2020 when the Request for Applications for Cohort IV will be released.

At that time, sites (i.e., state or county juvenile justice agencies and/or facility provider organizations) will have the opportunity to be selected to participate in the program through a competitive application process. Each selected site will have the opportunity to implement the YICPM in up to three facilities, which may include pre-adjudication detention facilities or post-dispositional facilities, whether operated publicly or privately.  CJCA and CJJR will accept applications in the following three forms:

1. Applications from state or county juvenile justice agencies;

2. Joint applications from state or county juvenile justice agencies and private facility provider organizations with which the agencies contract; and

3. Applications from private facility provider organizations.

Testimonials

“The Youth in Custody Practice Model (YICPM) has provided the Texas Juvenile Justice Department with a unique and structured method to not only take a very candid and critical look at how well we perform the most consequential aspects of our work, but also to determine what we will do differently and how we will implement the enhancements. The YICPM came along at a critical juncture in the reform effort in Texas and provided us the vehicle we needed to re-focus ourselves on those practices shown to produce the best outcomes and to do so in a way that will institutionalize best practice. As an agency, we could not have invested our time more wisely than to align our operations with this model.”

David Reilly, Executive Director, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

 

“The Youth in Custody Practice Model (YICPM) technical assistance through the Center for Juvenile Justice Reform and the Council of Juvenile Correctional Administrators has been a very positive and productive process for our team here at the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services. Our goal entering the process was to achieve the next level of quality in the delivery of secure residential services. The YICPM process has provided us with the structure, support and guidance to do just that. It’s very interactive and the ‘compass’ is set by the customer. The YICPM team has experience and discipline related to setting goals and outcome measures that have helped us tighten up a number of our core residential practices. It’s been a great opportunity.”

Peter Forbes, Commissioner, Massachusetts Dept. of Youth Services

 

“The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice is proud to participate in the Youth in Custody Practice Model (YICPM) as it aligns with our efforts in recent years to strategically reform our state’s juvenile justice system. The partner providers piloting the YICPM have developed strategic plans to improve facility practice and better support staff, and have implemented new strategies to enhance the residential environment and the services provided to youth. In short, participation in the YICPM has allowed us to strengthen our service delivery, implement best practices, and moves us forward in our mission to have the most comprehensive juvenile justice system possible and provide optimal services for the youth in our care.”

Christina K. Daly, Secretary, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

 

“As one of five private care management organizations contracted to deliver juvenile justice services in Wayne County, Michigan, StarrVista is always looking for ways in which we can provide services to our children and families that meet their risk and needs. Over the past year we have worked with the Youth in Custody Practice Model (YICPM) consultants who have guided us in assessing and enhancing our policies and practice. The YICPM initiative enables juvenile justice agencies to develop and refine policies and practice within a research-based structure. It is a blueprint that will result in improved outcomes for children and families while supporting and engaging staff. The YICPM is a ‘win-win’ on every level.”

Michelle Rowser, CEO, StarrVista, Wayne County, Michigan

 

 

Download the YICPM - An Abbreviated Guide