A significant proportion of the US young people are currently involved in the juvenile justice system. Of all youth in the United States, approximately 21% suffer from a diagnosable mental or substance use disorder that causes at least minimal impairment. This estimate is likely 2-3 times higher for youth who enter the juvenile justice system. A…

Child welfare is not the only system in which disparities have been identified in U.S. foster care. According to the recent Children's Defense Fund's report "America's Cradle to Prison Pipeline," racial and economic disparities exist in many systems including child welfare, health care, mental health, education, and juvenile and criminal justice.…

The majority of court-involved youths have experienced academic failure, school exclusion, and dropout. Researchers have identified factors that increase a youth's risk for court involvement and incarceration. The risk factors include individual, family, community, peer, and school factors. Researchers actually have identified specific…

In the past decade, there has been a growing convergence between schools and legal systems. The school to prison pipeline refers to this growing pattern of tracking students out of educational institutions, primarily via "zero tolerance" policies, and, directly and/or indirectly, into the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems. The school to…

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the impact of a word study literacy approach on the spelling ability and self-efficacy of adults in a county jail. Forty-four inmates participated in the word study intervention that provided them with hands-on learning. The word study intervention was conducted in four separate sessions (September,…

Strength-based approaches, originating in juvenile justice as early as the late 1800s, situate the work of juvenile correctional facilities as assisting youth in utilizing their strengths and competencies to understand how they can be applied their lives to affect change and growth. While strengths-based approaches might have originated…

Carl Upchurch was born and raised in Philadelphia in the 1950's. His mother, uncle and grandmother socialized him during his early childhood. His grandmother was his primary caregiver and a prostitute, his father drifted in and out of his life, and his uncle died in a gunfight. All this shaped Upchurch as a person and led to his development of the…

Co-author of the popular titles "Booktalking Bonanza" and "The Early Literacy Kit", Betsy Diamant-Cohen brings together 18 examples of successful outreach partnerships that children's librarians and administrators can adapt to their own situations. Contributors from the U.S and Canada explain how they partnered with schools,…

This project examines the early educational experiences of 6 young African American males (ages 18-25) who attended urban schools in San Diego, California. All 6 men were incarcerated for at least 1-year before participating in a pre-release program. The participants were part of a pre-release program in San Diego, California, which was selected…

By picking up this guide, you have already taken an important step towards continuing your education. Going back to school will require hard work and dedication. The process will be both challenging and frustrating. But if you stick with it, continuing your education can bring you tremendous rewards. Earning a General Education Development…

For more than a decade, correctional leaders throughout the country have attempted to come to grips with the basic issues involved in ascertaining and meeting the needs of correctional institutions. This study investigated job satisfaction in 122 correctional officers employed in both rural and urban prison locations for the State of Kansas…

This document, written for officials involved in making and implementing decisions regarding the correctional response to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), provides the most current figures and trend data on the incidence of AIDS among incarcerated offenders. The stated purpose of this document is to be informational rather than…

This report was prepared for the Wisconsin State Legislative Council's Special Committee on Community Corrections Issues. It provides background information on the Wisconsin prison system for adults and the Wisconsin community corrections system for adults. Part I examines the prison system, focusing on administration of the system, sentencing…

This article discusses the current role and status of recreation in corrections. (PD)

Discusses the ideal goals and the real problems involved in running a prison library. (PF)