OJJDP publications during FY 1998 addressed a variety of topics, including conditions in juvenile correctional facilities, guidelines to help coaches combat drug use by players, school safety, and serious juvenile offenders. The major publications described below are all available from JJC (see "How To Access Information From JJC"). A list of all OJJDP publications released in FY 1998 appears in the appendix.
Annual Report on School Safety (1998)
The President asked Attorney General Janet Reno and U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley to develop a report on school safety that would provide the Nation with an overview of the nature and extent of school crime and a comprehensive model for enhancing school safety. OJJDP worked with the U.S. Department of Education on the Annual Report on School Safety (1998), which was released October 15, 1998, at the White House Conference on School Safety. The report examines data on criminal and violent incidents on school property at the national, State, and local levels; the data show that the vast majority of America's schools are safe places. The report also highlights measures some schools and communities have taken to prevent or address school violence and provides parents, students, and educators with information and resources to evaluate and enhance their own school's level of safety. The report will be updated annually.
Beyond the Walls: Improving Conditions of Confinement for Youth in Custody
Parents, child advocates, attorneys, and juvenile justice professionals will be able to further improve conditions in juvenile correctional facilities by using the tools in a report released by OJJDP in 1998. Beyond the Walls: Improving Conditions of Confinement for Youth in Custody offers step-by-step instructions, examples from real-life cases, and lists of organizations that can provide assistance. The publication describes six useful tools: the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, ombudsman programs, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, protection and advocacy systems, Federal and State administrative procedure statutes, and self-assessment. The report also includes relevant laws and key court decisions and discusses State ombudsman programs and protection and advocacy systems.
The Coaches Playbook Against Drugs
A Portable Guidebook, The Coaches Playbook Against Drugs, was developed to help middle and high school coaches talk to students about the dangers of drugs. OJJDP produced the 20-page document in partnership with the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). The Guidebook provides information on why players use drugs and how drugs affect them. It also offers pointers to help coaches get their message across and keep their teams drug free. A special feature is the Pledge To Beat Drugs. The Guidebook provides sample pledges for players and coaches that can be copied or modified to meet the needs of a team or school.
Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools
Although most schools are safe, the violence that occurs in some neighborhoods and communities has found its way inside the schoolhouse door. In response to a request from the President, OJJDP and the U.S. Department of Education worked together to develop an early warning guide to help adults reach out to troubled children. Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools is based on research and the positive experiences of schools around the country where the value and potential of each and every child are cherished and where good practices have produced, and continue to produce, successful students and communities. The Guide discusses characteristics of a school that is safe and responsive to children and early warning signs that may signal a troubled child. It also describes how to get help for troubled children, how to create a violence prevention and response plan, and how to respond to a crisis.
Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders
In March 1998, OJJDP announced the findings and recommendations of its Study Group on Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders. The study group, which comprised 22 researchers under the direction of Dr. Rolf Loeber and Dr. David P. Farrington, analyzed current research on risk factors and protective factors related to the development of serious violent juvenile offending careers. The study group's complete findings, first published in Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders: Risk Factors and Successful Interventions, are quite hopeful and compelling and provide valuable insights into the pathways to serious and violent juvenile offending. OJJDP also released the Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders Bulletin, which summarizes the study group's findings, in 1998.
Expanding on OJJDP's formative work published in the Comprehensive Strategy for Serious, Violent, and Chronic Juvenile Offenders (Wilson and Howell, 1993), the study group documented what is known about these types of offenders, what programs have been tried, how the programs have performed and what lessons can be drawn from them, and what research and evaluation efforts are needed to advance knowledge about preventing and controlling serious violent juvenile offending. A primary goal of the study group was to provide further guidance to jurisdictions implementing OJJDP's Comprehensive Strategy. OJJDP has published and distributed more than 30,000 copies of the Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders Bulletin. Additional Bulletins summarizing findings on specific programmatic areas are being developed.
OJJDP also launched a vigorous campaign to disseminate the study group's findings to policymakers and practitioners across the Nation. The Office held policy forums in Chicago, IL; Sacramento, CA; and Washington, DC. The forums gave policymakers and agency officials the opportunity to discuss with study group members the group's findings and their implications for policy, practice, and program development. To share the study group's findings, OJJDP also held a nationwide satellite videoconference with downlinks to more than 700 sites, the largest number of sites to view a broadcast in OJJDP's 5-year history of conducting videoconferences.
When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide
In May 1998, OJJDP released When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide. Written by parents for parents, the Guide provides firsthand insights into what families should do and expect when their children are missing. It has been distributed to every law enforcement agency and public library across the country and to nonprofit organizations, State clearinghouses for missing children, and family support programs. To date, more than 75,000 copies have been mailed out. Attorney General Reno promoted the publication during an appearance on "Larry King Live" on CNN. OJJDP's Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse received more than 3,000 calls during a 4-hour period after the broadcast and another 7,000 calls over the next 5 days. The callers were primarily grandparents and parents who wanted copies of the Guide as a precautionary measure. OJJDP is having the document translated into Spanish.
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