NCJ Number
216626
Journal
Journal of Knowledge and Best Practices in Juvenile Justice & Psychology Volume: 1 Issue: 1 Dated: 2006 Pages: 51-58
Date Published
2006
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article presents a proposal for a pilot program, the Volunteer Aftercare Program (VAP) designed to reduce juvenile recidivism, relapse, and reincarceration.
Abstract
A proposed pilot project (the Volunteer Aftercare Program (VAP)) focuses on youth whose actions have led to their detention or incarceration. The project proposes the need for a dedicated group of juvenile justice professionals willing to volunteer their time to save youth from a life of crime. An intervention was found necessary to promote successful community reintegration and to reduce repeat offending. The intervention should be based on the specific needs of the juvenile offender. The pilot project will be based in Houston, TX and on the campus of Prairie View A&M University. The project was slated to start in September 2006. The proposed program is theory-driven and based on several different aftercare programs. The youths involved in the program are released into the custody of their parents with no court-ordered supervision. The intervention requires collaboration on the part of all professionals and agencies involved. The Board will choose a group of six professionals (Group) from the community for the project. The Group will serve as mentors to youths and advisors to parents. An evaluation will be designed and conducted for the VAP intervention to help determine the effectiveness of the project and whether it is achieving its goals. The transition of youths out of a very structured environment with specialized care and intensive supervision into a less structured environment, such as school, neighborhood, and family homes can present potential problems. The VAP intervention assesses the juvenile offender before he or she is released from the correctional institutions, training volunteers in the community to work with juvenile offenders and their families, training volunteers in the community, requiring full collaboration among the Group and others, and applying modes of surveillance and monitoring to juveniles. Figure, table, references