As the fact sheet confirms, the number of juvenile offenders in residential placement in publicly and privately operated juvenile facilities has declined steadily since 2000. In 2008, fewer than 81,000 juvenile offenders were housed in residential facilities at the time of the census, the lowest number since 1993.

Resources:
"Juveniles in Residential Placement, 1997–2008" is available online at www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/229379.pdf.

Print copies may be ordered online at www.ncjrs.gov/App/ShoppingCart/ShopCart.aspx?item=NCJ+229379&repro.

All youths committed to state juvenile corrections agencies are eligible to participate in the contest. Entries must be submitted by March 19. Click here to download the announcement and entry form.

Selections will be based on originality, quality of presentation and representation of the contest theme, “For a safer tomorrow, invest in our youths today.” Winning artwork will be featured on the cover of the 2010 CJCA Yearbook publication and gift cards for art supplies will be awarded. Winners will be announced in May 2010.

Questions?
Please contact Liz Mengers at 781-843-2663 or yearbook@cjca.net.

Schindler has played an integral part of DYRS’s management team since March 2005. Prior to his appointment as interim director, Schindler served as chief of staff to the director since 2006, assisting with overall management of the agency and reforms, and was the agency’s point person on issues related to professional development, communications, legislative relations and internal investigations. He’s also served as DYRS’ first general counsel from 2005-2006, following the establishment of DYRS as a cabinet level agency. Prior to joining DYRS, Schindler served as a staff attorney with the Youth Law Center (YLC), a national public interest civil rights law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of young people in juvenile justice and child welfare systems nationwide, from 1997 to 2005. While at YLC he was involved with training, technical assistance, law reform litigation, and legislative and administrative advocacy on legal issues related to children, with emphasis on improving the conditions of confinement for institutionalized children and addressing racial disparities in the justice system.

As an attorney with the YLC, he was involved in extensive advocacy on behalf of children in juvenile justice systems throughout the country, including in Maryland, Virginia, and the District.

Schindler also served as co-chair of the national Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention Coalition in DC and was a founding member of the Justice for DC Youth Coalition, and taught children’s rights at American University’s Washington College of Law. Schindler has served on numerous boards and commissioners including:

• American Bar Association Juvenile Justice Committee (1993-2005)
• DC Police Complaints Board (2003-2005)
• Maryland Governor’s Task Force on Juvenile Justice (1996)
• Committee for Baltimore’s Children (1995)

In addition, Schindler has worked as an assistant public defender in Baltimore's juvenile court representing children in delinquency proceedings, where he was the recipient of the Cahill Award for outstanding commitment to service and chaired the Juvenile Law Committee of the Baltimore City Bar Association.

A graduate of Yale University and the University of Maryland School of Law, Schindler began his career more than 20 years ago. He has lived in the District for more than 10 years, currently residing in the Woodridge neighborhood with his wife and two children.

The webinar, supported by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, will be held at 2:00 P.M. (E.T.) on Thursday, January 14, 2010.

To register for the webinar, click here.

In 2009, the Council of State Governments Justice Center, with funding support from the Public Welfare Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and the Open Society Institute, developed a Reentry Checklist for state and local governments, and a Second Chance Act Fact Sheet for the reentry field. The resource center recently updated these materials.

• To view the updated checklist, click here.
• To view the updated fact sheet, click here.

The resource center is continually updating its website with materials relevant to the reentry field. To learn more about the resource center, including how to upload content to the site, please click here.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for Grants to Expand Substance Abuse Treatment Capacity for Juvenile Treatment Drug Courts.

The purpose of this program is to expand and enhance substance abuse treatment services in problem-solving courts that use the juvenile drug court model to provide alcohol and drug treatment, recovery support services supporting substance abuse treatment, screening, assessment, case management, and program coordination to juvenile defendants and offenders. Priority should be given to addressing gaps in the existing continuum of treatment.

Eligibility is restricted to current juvenile treatment drug courts or tribal, state, and local governmental proxies that may apply on their behalf. Grantees from the 2009 cohort of this program are ineligible. Applications must be received by February 23, 2010.

Resources:
For additional information about this funding opportunity, visit www.samhsa.gov/Grants/2010/TI-10-004.aspx.