NCJ Number
130089
Date Published
1991
Length
35 pages
Annotation
The Northern California Youth Center (NYCY) Visitor Center Program was evaluated to determine the extent to which the program met its legislatively-mandated objectives: to double the number of wards receiving visits from their families by the end of the final year of the contract; to improve institutional ward performance and behavior, resulting in reduced time spent by wards in institutions; and to improve ward parole performance, reducing recidivism by 10 percent a year.
Abstract
Officially opened on October 1, 1988, the center was established to provide visitor services to families of wards housed at three institutions of the NCYC complex -- Karl Holton, O.H. Close, and Dewitt Nelson. The evaluation revealed that the Visitor Center had little apparent impact on the number of visits and on the institutional performance of wards. An increased number of visits failed to reduce the number of disciplinary incidents in the institutions. In fact, increased visiting was associated with more disciplinary incidents. There was no statistically significant difference in the parole violation rate of wards who received the most visits compared with that for wards who received the fewest visits. The possible benefits of the program were not reflected in the extent to which the program met its legislatively-mandated objectives. 2 references, 3 appendixes, and 9 tables