"My plan is to try to have a total system of care that reduces the reliance on Alexander."
— Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe
The Governor has publicly stated his support for increasing community based treatment options as an alternative to incarceration. You can listen to the Governor talk about his ideas for juvenile justice from the KARN Ask the Governor call in show - October 12, 2007.
The Children's Behavioral Health Care Commission, created by Act 1593 of the 86th General Assembly, was appointed in July to "...play a vital role in establishing a system of care to ensure that Arkansas children and their families will have the options they need for effective treatment."
Juvenile Court Judges have expressed support for increasing the array of community based services around the state to provide more effective alternatives to incarceration.
Ron Angel, the Director of the Division of Youth Services, has vowed to work with advocates, the legislature, judges, families, and others to "rebuild our justice system so it ... truly helps the youth entrusted to our care."
The DYS Taskforce has been meeting since March 2007 and is diverse group of juvenile justice system practitioners, educators, stakeholders and advocates. The group has been tasked with developing recommendations for system improvement by reviewing current programs and services and making recommendations that include national best practices and model programs. The recommendations will guide the development of the DYS Strategic Plan for future programmatic enhancements. Specific areas of interest include:
- Juvenile Justice System Improvement - Intake & Assessment and Placement Process, Transitional Services & Aftercare, Community Services Planning;
- Conditions of Confinement - New Facilities, Treatment Services & Facility Utilization, Education Services;
- Program Integrity and continuous Quality Improvement - Outcome Measurements.
The JEHT Foundation has agreed to fund a consultant position through the National Center for Youth Law to assist the Division of Youth Services (DYS) in developing a preliminary juvenile justice plan, to include the projected budget impact of reform for the 2010-2011 biennium budget period, and follow-up facilitative services in connection with the proposed DYS budget through the period ending 8-31-08.
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