Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2023, $750,000)
Description of the Issue - Nature and Scope of the Problem
In FY 2022 the Maryland juvenile court committed 260 young people to the care and custody of the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) for out-of-home placement. Often, these young people, who have experienced tremendous levels of trauma, find it difficult to return to their communities from a custodial setting and maintain long term behavior change that results in reduced recidivism. These young people, who often lack critical emotional regulation skills, often end up cycling though the criminal justice system with limited positive outcomes. DJS understands that there is a better way to serve these young people as they navigate the process of reentry, a way that will allow us to help young people meet their fullest potential and reduce recidivism.
DJS is launching three “Innovation Teams” – multidisciplinary groups focused on radically reimagining the culture and climate of our residential facilities to transform how young people experience them while they’re there, but especially how they leave the facility to reenter into their communities. Globally, the project seeks to integrate the community more into their residential experience, creating warm, nurturing spaces that foster young people’s dreams, create therapeutic settings to heal, and set them up to return home with skills and support they need to thrive.
Department of Juvenile Services Today: DJS consists of a statewide community-based supervision unit and residential operations unit that includes 6 detention facilities and 3 residential treatment centers. The community supervision unit utilizes 30 local offices throughout the state to oversee the case management operations for young person under court-ordered probation and reentry/aftercare services. Community Services also includes the Resource Units, which assist in facilitating non-DJS operated (contracted/other state agency operated) in-home and residential committed treatment services for young persons. The residential unit operates 6 detention facilities to provide the temporary and secure custody of young person subject to court jurisdiction. Generally, the population in the detention facility consists of young people pending their adjudication, charged as adults pending adult transfer hearings, and those young people pending placement in a committed (either DJS or Non-DJS operated) residential treatment facility[i]. The residential unit also operates three committed treatment programs that provide comprehensive treatment services focused on skill building and positive young person development.
FY 2022 DJS Operated Residential Facilities
Facility
Type
Capacity
FY2022 Average Length of Stay
FY2022 Placements
Backbone Mountain Youth Center
Staff Secure[1] – Committed Treatment Facility
21 males
129.6 days
48
Green Ridge Youth Center
Staff Secure -Committed Treatment Facility
21 males
136.3 days
36
Victor Cullen Center
Hardware Secure[2] – Committed Treatment Facility
18 males
144.8 days
34
DJS contracts with an array of programs, both in and out of state, to provide treatment services to committed young persons. The full range of DJS placement options include: (a) Foster Care Homes (traditional and treatment foster care); (b) Group Homes (general service and therapeutic); (c) Independent Living Programs/Alternative Living Units (often used as a step-down from a more restrictive program placement); (d) Residential Treatment Centers (RTCs) and non-Medicaid Residential Treatment Facilities (out-of-state); (e) DJS-operated and out-of-state staff secure treatment programs; and (g) hardware-secure treatment programs, both DJS-operated and privately contracted out-of-state.
FY2022 Total Statewide Average Daily Population and Length of Stay (DJS operated and non-DJS operated)
Placements
Average Daily Population (young person)
Average Length of Stay
(days)
Non-DJS Operated
Foster Care
2
2.7
1,183.8
Group Home
79
40.6
197.6
Independent Living
1
2
223.9
Residential Treatment Center
53
34
216.2
Non-DJS Operated
Out-of-State
Staff Secure
4
1.3
175.2
Hardware Secure
3
2.7
124.7
Residential Treatment Center
12
3.7
147.7
DJS Operated
Staff Secure
93
33.4
128.7
Hardware Secure
34
12.3
144.8
Total
260
132.7
202.5
The juvenile court determines, at disposition, if a young person requires treatment services in a residential (out-of-home) treatment facility. The court will review the DJS assessments including security level and treatment need recommendations. DJS is committed to selecting the most appropriate out-of-home program for young person who have been committed to the custody of DJS by the juvenile court. The court determines the appropriate level of care for each young person but does not select the specific programs to which the young person are referred. Treatment programs vary based on the services provided, as well as by security level. DJS has made significant reform efforts in recent years, including an increased focus on several key principles to guide decision making regarding out-of-home placements.
Project Design and Implementation
[1] Staff Secure – a facility that where youth movement is controlled by staff supervision rather than by restrictive architectural features.
[2] Hardware Secure – a facility that relies primarily on the use of construction and hardware such as locks, bars, and fences to restrict freedom.
In order to radically transform the experience our young people have reentering communities, we are starting with radically transforming our facilities themselves through a process we are calling an “Innovation Team”. It is our belief that radically transforming the climate and culture of our facilities serves two critical purposes:
Staff and kids are deserving of working and living in an environment that acknowledges and recognizes their full humanity; and
As the agency works to shift capacity and resources from residential services to community, the de-incarceration movement requires a two prong approach, where resources are deployed to develop a robust residential strategy that works to stop the revolving door to entry, reimagines the role of residential staff, and innovates vibrant and strong community ties.
Both of these purposes will completely shift the way young people reenter: they will not feel so “removed” from their communities in the first place, and the transition from a facility and back home will be less jarring. Our approach centers the experiences, perspectives, and wisdom of the people most impacted by the change - the young people and staff. The strategy will unfold organically as we execute a co-design framework. However, we do know that several of our core values/anchors will need to be operationalized; these include: social, political, and historical education; cultural healing; restorative justice; and racial justice and equity.
The charge is for the Innovation Team to facilitate transformation, to start, in three facilities: Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center (BCJJC), Western Maryland Children’s Center (WMCC), and Victor Cullen Center (VCC). Our belief is that to do such radical systems change, we cannot launch at all of our facilities at once. Rather, we plan to create model units at each facility, show success, elicit buy-in, and then spread the model to the rest of the facility, before moving on to launch at other facilities. Eventually however, all facilities in our system will be shaped by this approach. To manage this endeavor we are proceeding with a multilayered organizational structure to help achieve both inclusion and accountability. The Lead Innovation Team will function as an Advisory Board, helping to inform, influence, and champion creativity throughout the change process; while the three facility-based Innovation Teams will be working to develop and implement strategies at the facility level.
The team is working on developing community agreements (e.g. in this space, we don’t use roles and titles and we call everyone by their first name); a set of core values anchoring the work; and a shared understanding of key language and concepts (by using a Glossary that everyone can access).
The next steps are to organize and form the Facility Innovation Teams (BCJJC will launch first, WMCC second, and VCC third), and the first key activity and deliverable will be for the Research and Evaluation team to conduct an analysis specific to each facility. And then for us to conduct focus groups with young people and staff (separately) to react, reflect, and provide input around the climate/culture data analysis. These focus groups will aim to: better understand the practices behind the data, begin documenting ideas and solutions, and continue to identify leaders and champions (change agents) among kids and staff.
The families and young people on the Lead Team are being paid for their expertise. For the kids, we are working with HR and case managers to get them into our payroll system so ongoing tracking of hours and compensation can happen easily and swiftly (kids in confinement will have their checks cut upon return to the community).
Lead (Advisory) Innovation Team
Deputy Secretary Residential Services
Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary
Innovation Team Project Manager
Innovation Team Advisor
Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff
Positive Youth Development Special Advisor
Executive Director Office of Equity & Inclusion
Executive Director Commitment
Executive Director Detention
Program Services Coordinator
Executive Director Intake & Pre-Adjudication
Family & Youth Coordinator
Impacted Young Person (detained at BCJJC)
Impacted Young Person (detained at BCJJC)
Impacted Young Person (detained at BCJJC)
Impacted Young Person (pending placement at BCJJC)
Impacted Young Person (pending placement at BCJJC)
Impacted Young Person
Impacted Young Person
Director of General Services
Impacted Parent/Guardian
Impacted Parent/Guardian
Impacted Parent/Guardian
JSEP Representative
Resident Advisor Supervisor
Resident Advisor Supervisor
Residential Case Manager
Community Case Manager
Research & Eval Rep
Grassroot Community Leader
Our budget reflects the need for a number of outside experts to lead, shape, and direct this work. These include:
A facilitator with deep expertise in working with girls in the justice system and radical systems-change work.
Compensation and travel expenses for juvenile justice system involved young people to advise the innovation teams. Travel expenses will cover their travel to the Facility Innovation Team meeting sites, and elsewhere where meetings are occurring (for example, Lead Team meetings may be at a DJS office).
Compensation and travel expenses for family members of juvenile justice system involved young people to advise the innovation teams. Travel expenses will cover their travel to the Facility Innovation Team meeting sites, and elsewhere where meetings are occurring (for example, Lead Team meetings may be at a DJS office).
Facilitation and participation for a grassroots, local organization rooted in the principles and practices we seek to integrate into the innovation team sites, including racial equity, positive youth development, and cultural healing. This group will participate both in the Lead team and the Facility-based teams.
Facilitation and participation for a restorative justice organization that can educate the innovation team on restorative principles and ensure restorative principles are integrated into all aspects of the new model units. This group will participate both in the Lead team and the Facility-based teams. Additionally, we are seeking funds to send key staff members to the OJJDP convening in November, to learn best practices from our national colleagues and experts.
Capabilities and Competencies
Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS): DJS is an executive agency with the responsibility of appropriately managing, supervising, and treating young person involved in the juvenile justice system. The Department of Juvenile Services is involved in nearly every stage of the juvenile justice process from the moment a young person is brought into a juvenile intake center by the police or because of a citizen complaint to the time when a young person returns to the community after completing treatment. DJS operates seven (6) detention facilities and six (3) committed facilities to meet the needs of young person. DJS has a responsibility to the community as a whole and to the young person it serves to maintain a safe environment for all young person.
The Department is the central Cabinet --level agency responsible for providing individualized care and treatment of young person offenders up to age twenty-one. The department's mission seeks to ensure the public safety and protection of the community, to hold young person offenders accountable to victims and communities, and to develop young person competency and character to assist them in becoming responsible and productive members of society. In carrying out its mission, DJS embraces a balanced and restorative justice philosophy incorporating evidence-based best practices.
Improve positive outcomes for justice-involved young person
Only use incarceration when necessary for public safety
Keep committed and detained young person safe while delivering services to meet young person needs
Ensure a continuum of care for justice-involved young person that is age- and developmentally-appropriate
Build, value, and retain a diverse, competent, and professional workforce
Enhance the quality, availability, and use of technology to improve services for staff, young person, and families.
DJS is led by Secretary Vinny Schiraldi since January 2023. Secretary Schiraldi is a national leader in criminal/juvenile justice and mass incarceration reform, a field he has worked in for more than four decades. He previously served as Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Corrections, and before that Columbia University, where he served as Senior Research Scientist at the Columbia School of Social Work and co-Director of the Columbia Justice Lab, working to reduce the footprint and negative impact of community corrections, eliminate young person prisons, and create a developmentally appropriate response to offending by young adults. Mr. Schiraldi went to Columbia from the Harvard Kennedy School Program in Criminal Justice where he was a Senior Researcher. Mr. Schiraldi also has extensive government experience in criminal and juvenile justice. While Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Correction, he attempted to close Riker’s Island and end the practice of solitary confinement. Mr. Schiraldi also served as director of juvenile corrections in Washington DC, as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Probation, and as Senior Policy Adviser to the NYC Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice. He also pioneered efforts at community-based alternatives to incarceration in NYC and Washington DC as founder and executive director of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice and Justice Policy Institute, respectively. Schiraldi has lectured at the Columbia University School of Social Work, Harvard Law School, NYU School of Social Work, San Francisco University, and the Georgetown University Center for Juvenile Justice Reform. Schiraldi received a Master’s in Social Work from New York University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Binghamton University.
Supporting Secretary Schiraldi in leading this work with DJS will be the Deputy Secretary of Community Operations and the Deputy Secretary of Residential Operations. The DJS Research and Evaluation team will pay a significant role in supporting the program management and evaluation of this project. The DJS Research and Evaluation team has the capacity to do process and outcome evaluations of the initiative, including ensuring fidelity to the model, implementation, and overall young person and justice system outcomes. The Research and Evaluation team will work directly with the Lead Innovation team to develop the quantitative and qualitative reporting structures to build a system of quality assurance. Moreover, DJS has the capacity to build real-time and long-term outcomes reports. DJS is exploring funding for an outside evaluator to evaluate the “Innovation Teams” process and outcomes.
Plan for Collecting the Data Required for This Solicitation’s Performance Measures
DJS is developing an evaluation strategy and seeking to work with an external evaluator. DJS is getting feedback from young people, families, and all members of the Lead Innovation team regarding what variables should be collected and reviewed in hopes of creating a truly participatory process to examine positive indicators, not just conventional metrics used in criminal justice research.
Currently, DJS generates quarterly performance reports to monitor the following goals of the reentry strategic plan:
Percent of families committed young person attending reentry meeting;
Percent of young person released from DJS committed facilities who took part in career development programming during placement;
Percent of families of committed young person who felt informed during their child’s commitment and reentry process; and,
Percent of committed young person with identified behavior health needs connected with service providers 30 days from discharge.
DJS will expand performance reports to incorporate outcome data related to additional goals of the reentry program. Moreover, DJS provides yearly reports related to recidivism of young person released from committed residential facilities. Measuring recidivism for DJS young persons is a vital tool for understanding the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing future system involvement and for measuring the ultimate public safety impact of services provided. Though other outcomes are also important to study, including future educational attainment, employment, and other non-offense-related outcomes, recidivism remains the primary measure of success. DJS therefore conducts an annual recidivism study and publishes comprehensive recidivism reports as part of the Data Resource Guide. It is important to note that recidivism is not only a measure of the effectiveness of the program/services provided, but it also depends on the quality of re-entry planning, aftercare supervision, availability, and quality of supports in the community and/or family to which young person return, local economic opportunities, and other factors. It is also important to account for the assessed risk levels of young persons served when analyzing success. All young persons assigned to probation or placed in an out-of-home treatment programs are assessed for risk of future reoffending using the validated MCASP Risk & Needs Assessment. The assessed risk level guides decisions about the level of supervision and intensity of treatment services required for an individual young person. MCASP identifies factors that have been shown to predict future reoffending, such as prior delinquency and criminogenic risk factors including school, family, substance use, and peers. Programs that serve higher-risk young person might expect to see higher recidivism rates than those serving lower-risk young people. Studies have also shown that services designed for a higher-risk young person may not be effective, or even prove detrimental if provided to a lower-risk young person. For these reasons, DJS recidivism reports include a breakdown of the levels of risk of the young person involved.
Specifically, for young people released from committed residential treatment facilities, DJS reports the following:
Overall recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) for treatment program releases in 6-,12-, 24-, 36-month increments.
12-month recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) by demographics.
12-month recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) by program type (foster care, group home, independent living, RTC, out-of-state, and state-operated).
12-month recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) by county.
12-month recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) by risk level.
12-month recidivism rates (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration) by individual program.
In addition to monitoring outcomes related to recidivism of young people engaged in the reentry program, DJS will be able to work with the Maryland Longitudinal Data System Center (MLDS) to analyze data related to certain education and workforce metrics. DJS will also evaluate measures related to achieving cultural change, operational change, staff knowledge and behaviors, and young peoples’ behavior change.
The effectiveness of DJS staff in delivering services in line with the reentry process.
The ability of young people to demonstrate improved emotional regulation skills and behavior change;
The degree to which there are clear systems/protocols to monitor and supervise the implementation of each of the selected reentry practices.
The degree to which leadership regularly provides feedback to supervisors and front-line staff on the implementation of each of the selected reentry practices.
The degree to which supervisors regularly provide feedback to front-line staff on the implementation of each of the selected reentry practices.
The degree to which leadership and supervisors are able to effectively navigate and manage technical needs/challenges as well as cultural (organizational climate) needs/challenges
The degree to which the selected reentry practices have been effectively integrated into regular/daily operations
The degree to which there is a process to train and support new staff in of the selected new reentry practices.
The degree to which staff have access to the tools and resources needed to implement selected reentry practices with young people.
The degree to which there are systems in place to collect data and feedback the implementation of selected reentry practice.
The degree to which there are systems in place to collect data on the impact of selected reentry practices with young people.
The degree to which data is used and integrated into regular staff supervision with consistency and integrated into planning.
The degree to which the voice of young people and families informs the reentry practice.
All this data will be used to support the refinement of the integration of each of the reentry practices into the Department’s ongoing residential and community operations. All data will also be used to inform the implementation of the project and to support the finalization of a comprehensive plan for the Department’s reentry functions and ensuring that they are aligned with research and science.
Goals Objectives Deliverables
Goal
Objectives
Deliverables
Launch Innovation Teams for the three targeted sites as well as an overarching team to create a strategy and plan for radical transformation of our residential facilities that will impact all facets of care there but especially how young people reenter their communities.
Procure technical assistance and training support
Launch four teams (three facility teams plus the overarching lead team)
Launch model units in three facilities
Evaluate, expand facility-wide
Expand department-wide
Plans created by each innovation team for their model unit vision
Actual model units with physical changes reflective of the plan (including furniture, windows, etc.) and other tangible changes (revised job descriptions for staff, updated visitation/phone policies, etc.)
DJS will deliver treatment and needs based case planning and service linkage, and employ effective supervision practices.
Improve use of the treatment model and needs assessments
Implement a community case plan based on service linkage
All facilities are utilizing tools and service linkage protocols.
DJS will deliver effective and developmentally appropriate programming, including education and workforce development services that target criminogenic needs
Implement a Workforce Development and Education Strategy.
Develop a housing and community support strategy
Young people are offered workforce develop and education linkages as appropriate
Young people are linked to housing and community supports as assessed
DJS will document the effect of its Innovation Team strategy on recidivism, education, employment and behavioral health outcomes, as well as positive youth development oriented outcomes like array of programming and vocational options, family visits before release, etc.
Develop an outcome measurement and evaluation plan.
Establish plan for managing and reporting data
Work to secure funding for an external evaluator
Comprehensive outcome and process evaluation is completed
Routine data reporting to help ensure implementation and monitor progress
PROJECT TIMELINE
While this timeline will be reviewed and updated as part of the project planning process, the timeline below outlines our preliminary expectations regarding project implementation.
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Q6
Q7
Q8
Q9
Q10
Q11
Q12
Project Planning and Evaluation Design
Procure outside help- trainers, facilitators, youth and family participants
Launch Innovation Teams – lead team, BCJJC team, WMCC team, and VCC team
BCJJC team launches model unit
WMCC team launches model unit
VCC team launches model unit and all teams begin expanding facility-wide
Program Oversight and Administration include weekly internal meetings, regular meetings of all four innovation teams, and evaluation meetings.
PROGRAM EVALUATION