Contra Costa Youth Reentry & Empowerment Project

The Fiscal Year 2017 Smart on Juvenile Justice: Enhancing Youth Access to Justice Initiative (hereinafter “Initiative”) aims to further OJJDP’s mission by funding efforts to (1) develop and implement standards of policy and practice to effectively manage well-resourced, statewide juvenile indigent defense systems; (2) develop state or regional resource centers that will help state, tribal, and local juvenile defense systems enhance the quality of legal representation, leverage resources, and collect and analyze data to measure the effectiveness of juvenile defense initiatives; and, (3) support community-based nonprofit organizations that provide direct reentry services, mentoring, and reentry planning to youth in secure confinement or out-of-home placement who are transitioning, or have recently transitioned, back to their families and communities. The goal of Category Three is to fund community-based service providers to offer and deliver reentry services to youth who are reintegrating into communities following secure confinement or out-of-home placement. Awards under Category Three will be made pursuant to Section 211 of the Second Chance Act, 42 USC 17531; Pub. L. No. 115-31, 131 Stat. 135, 204.

The Contra Costa Youth Reentry and Empowerment Project (CCYREP), a partnership between the Contra Costa County Public Defender's Office and Bay Area Legal Aid, will: (1) provide, expand and strengthen access to integrated, high quality, effective reentry services that address the needs of youth returning to their communities following secure confinement and out-of-home placement; (2) improve knowledge and increase capacity of program staff, professionals and practitioners associated with the juvenile justice system, and staff of community-based organizations to help youth identify and overcome barriers to successful reentry; and, (3) develop and provide information and guidance for reentering youth, their families, community-based service providers, and other personnel within the juvenile justice system. The CCYREP will provide reentry services across the full range of substantive areas, including: housing; record sealing; expungement; access to healthcare and mental health services; consumer protection; family and domestic violence assistance; and, disability-based benefits, rights, and accommodations. CA/NCF