Iowa's Comprehensive Juvenile Reentry System (JReS)

OJJDP's Juvenile Justice System Improvement Grants program was established to provide grants and cooperative agreements to organizations that provide programs and services critical to the mission of OJJDP, and organizations that OJJDP has selected for funds in prior years. This program will be authorized by an Act appropriating funds for the Department of Justice.

Iowa’s Division of Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning developed a Juvenile Reentry Task Force to establish a framework for reforming current practice and policy to effectuate change from pre- to post-release. The reentry effort, referred to as Iowa’s Juvenile Reentry System (JReS), targets system-involved youth returning to their communities from the State Training School, group care, and Psychiatric Medical Institutes for Children. JReS has provided training for system officials, increased the availability and existence of health/mental health services for system-involved youth, refers clients to employment and vocational rehabilitation support services, and increases school engagement.

Key activities supported by the current OJJDP grant award and the proposed supplemental funding include:

• Developing a common referral form and process across all districts, which will be embedded in a technology system to share with providers.
• Holding two treatment team meetings for all youth—the first at placement, and the second prior to release. Sub-committee chairs are working to build clear policies and expectations for these meetings, and ensure that there are tools and structures in place to monitor the quality and outcomes of these meetings.
• Developing a standardized, comprehensive case plan based on a youth’s risk assessment results. This case plan will be embedded in the technology system and accessible to staff working with the youth both in the facility and community.
• Developing a tool and process for determining youth’s length of stay, based on the results of the risk assessment results and treatment needs.
• Piloting a Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) program for a select number of youth at the State Training School. The Services subcommittee is in the process of developing its referral and eligibility policies for review and approval.
• Developing a model transition policy document that will delineate roles, responsibilities, and protocols for ensuring youth are transitioning back to appropriate educational settings in a timely and effective manner.
• Developing a reentry checklist of data points that will be built into the technology system in order to track and monitor all key activities and ensure that goals for each youth have been met.
• Identifying potential mental health and substance use screening and assessments to administer to youth at the point of intake.

NCA/NCF