Re-Entry By Design

The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative Discretionary Grant Program was developed through a federal partnership by the Departments of Justice, Labor, Health and Human Service, Education, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Veterans Affairs and Agriculture. The federal partners' goal is to help state and local agencies navigate the complex field of existing state formula and block grants and to assist them in accessing, redeploying and leveraging those resources to support the components of a comprehensive reentry program. In addition to the new funding, the federal partners are identifying funds from their respective agencies that are already available to state and local agencies to provide the necessary services to implement a reentry program.

The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative Grant Program is designed to provide funding to state and local units of government to develop and implement institutional and community corrections-based offender reentry programs through collaborative partnerships with government, social service, faith-based, and community organizations, in order to reduce recidivism, increase public safety, and successfully reintegrate serious and violent offenders back into the community. Reentry programs must be sustained for a 36-month period and are required to partner with a state adult or juvenile correctional agency.

The Missouri Department of Social Services, Division of Youth Service (DYS) plans to utilize its FY 2002 funds to target Missouri's most serious, at-risk juvenile offenders and provide them an opportunity to experience healthy relationships, learn vocational skills, and develop a sense of community responsibility and work ethic. First, DYS would provide hands-on vocational exploration instruction in some of its residential sites. Next, DYS would partner with local community colleges and trade schools, enlist industry involvement, and employ mentors/custodians to decrease the youth's propensity to re-offend and increase personal productivity and self-reliance while the youth is receiving aftercare services. DYS proposes to establish programs for youth who successfully complete an individualized curriculum of treatment and educational goals and objectives in a residential setting. During the youth's transition to the community, DYS wishes to assist the youth to pursue formal vocational/career skills, acquire job retention abilities, and develop independent living skills. Youth who meet the enrollment requirements of community colleges, vocational schools or trade industry apprenticeship programs would be assigned a mentor/custodian roommate on the campus or in the immediate community.

Grant funding would be used to:
' Purchase hands-on vocational tools and equipment, for secure care residential programs, to target a wide variety of career clusters.
' Pay tuition and housing fees, and other daily living expenses, not covered by other financial aid sources, student income, or personal resources.
' Contract with trade industry apprenticeship programs to provide employment and training opportunities.
' Pay a monthly stipend to mentor/custodian roommates of the targeted youth.

The target population is adjudicated youth 14-18 years of age, and in some cases up to 21, committed to DYS. Included are youth committed to the dual jurisdiction program, who will serve adult probation after completing their sentence in a juvenile facility. This program will be available to youth statewide.

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