The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how 7th-12th grade teachers described their active and passive transfer of the social capital elements of social structure and individual actions to at-risk youths during the reentry process into the general classroom in a Southwestern school district. The theoretical foundation of…

Increasing engagement to school, employment, and community are strong predictors of reducing recidivism for youth involved in the juvenile justice system. This study examined what occurs at reentry upon leaving a youth correctional setting. This study comprised of qualitative semi-structured interviews of transition specialists (TSs; n = 7) and…

Reentry, also referred to as transition, is a critical component in preparing at-risk youth in juvenile justice facilities for successful postrelease outcomes. However, successfully preparing these youth for reentry into the community and back to traditional K-12 schools is still difficult for many justice facilities. With the continued calls for…

The Second Chance Act authorizes federal grants for comprehensive reentry planning, direct pre- and postrelease services, and sustainable justice system improvements that promote positive youth and family outcomes, reduce recidivism, and increase public safety. This "In Focus" briefly describes two types of Office of Juvenile Justice and…

Youth served within juvenile justice facilities are to be afforded the same educational benefits as their peers in nonsecure educational settings, including transition supports. Transition supports include the purposeful delivery of strategies and interventions to build a wide variety of skills based on youth interests and preferences regarding…

The Second Chance Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act encourage juvenile justice personnel to collaborate with not-for-profit organizations, employers, and community schools to provide incarcerated girls with disabilities transition support to reenter their community after incarceration. The "Career and College…

This document summarizes the five schools districts profiled during the 2021-2022 school year that are building walls between schools and the justice system, engaging in restorative policies and practices, working to eliminate bias and disproportionality, and providing all children with fair and equitable access to high-quality opportunities. The…

The purpose of this study was to listen to what youth with special needs in juvenile justice (JJ) settings say they need to be successful during reentry. The three instruments used to gain an understanding of their perspectives on reentry and their perceptions of barriers include (a) intake interviews, (b) focus groups, and (c) semi-structured…

Previously incarcerated youth reintegrating into their communities face many challenges. This study provided visual entry into the lives of three youth through the use of Photovoice methodology. Participants included three males, two Latinos and one White non-Latino, who had successfully been reentered into their communities for at least four…

Located in Harris, Texas, Aldine Independent School District (ISD) serves 67,130 students. Despite being categorized as a richly diverse district with vast opportunity, there are generational disadvantages regarding education attainment and economic status. Poverty is the common denominator of all students across the district, regardless of color.…

Located in southwestern Pennsylvania near the borders of Maryland and West Virginia, the district has 1,483 students, with 21% minority enrollment. The district and its students have experienced many of the problems related to the opioid epidemic, including many students being raised by grandparents due to parental drug use. The district has three…

On a given day, more than 43,000 youths who largely identify as students of color and are disproportionately male are held in residential placement facilities as a result of involvement with the juvenile justice system. More than two-thirds of youths living in placement facilities who participated in a national survey shared aspirations to…

Located in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York, Riverhead Central School District draws students from three townships: Southampton, Brookhaven and Riverhead. This suburban district has just fewer than 6,000 students and is diverse, both racially and in socioeconomic status. Demographics in the district have changed over the past 20 years or…

Each year numerous school-aged youth with and without disabilities are arrested and incarcerated. For those youth with disabilities who are ages 16 or older, it is mandated under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that they receive transition planning and services. For those youth who will be transitioning back into a school…

Located in Phoenix, Arizona, the Phoenix Union High School District (PXU) was the only high school district profiled as part of this project. The high school district is made up of 13 elementary districts that feed into it and has 11 comprehensive high schools, four small specialty schools, three micro-schools, three support schools and a digital…