U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Shay Bilchik, Administrator

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

OFF ICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS

BJA NI J OJJDP BJS OVC

April 1999 #102

Employment and Training for

Court-Involved Youth: An Overview

by Heather E. Frey

Court-involved youth are youth who come in contact with the

juvenile justice system for committing a status offense or a

delinquent act. Often disenfranchised by the education system

and under juvenile justice system jurisdiction, these youth find it

difficult to learn marketable skills or compete for jobs. Yet

research demonstrates that employability is critical to the success

of high-risk youth. The link between crime and lack of economic

opportunity requires the country’s more concerted attention

through collaboration between employers, the juvenile justice

system, and the workforce development system.

To help develop effective strategies for improving vocational

training, reducing youth crime and recidivism, and improving the

connections between court-involved youth and the labor market,

the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training

Administration (ETA), and the U.S. Department of Justice,

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP),

funded the Home Builders Institute of the National Association

of Home Builders to convene a Task Force on Employment and

Training for Court-Involved Youth. The Task Force consisted of

researchers, program experts, market analysts, and individuals

representing businesses, corporations, foundations, and Federal,

State, and local agencies.

The goals of the Task Force were to:

◆ Understand the diverse needs of court-involved youth.

◆ Identify the most promising mix of employment and training

strategies to move court-involved youth into the mainstream.

◆ Define the roles and responsibilities of the agencies and

organizations that work with court-involved youth to enhance

training and employment opportunities.

◆ Recommend ways the workforce development, juvenile

justice, education, social service, community-based support,

and labor market systems can collaborate to provide effective

job training and employment for court-involved youth.

Recognizing that the operational processes and purposes of the

juvenile justice and workforce development systems are significantly different, the Task Force analyzed the vocabulary, governance structure, and programmatic nuances of each system. The

findings of the Task Force are summarized in an upcoming OJJDP

Report, Employment and Training for Court-Involved Youth. The

Report, designed for policymakers and practitioners from each of

these fields, provides an overview of the juvenile justice system,

the workforce development system, and other major systems that

must work together to provide services to court-involved youth. It

also offers examples of effective practices, promising programs,

and systems collaboration to help policymakers and service

providers prepare court-involved youth for the job market.

Promising Programs

A key challenge for both policymakers and service providers is

developing programs that prepare court-involved youth for jobs

while also meeting developmental needs of youth, labor market

requirements of employers, and safety and security needs of

communities. According to the Task Force’s Report, programs

that successfully link court-involved youth to the labor market

share the following elements:

◆ Age-appropriate and comprehensive youth development.

◆ Involvement of an adult advocate and the family.

◆ Work-based learning and academic development.

◆ Close attention to career development and job placement.

◆ Long-term follow up.

Programs that serve court-involved youth can be divided into

three categories: early intervention, residential, and aftercare.

Early Intervention Programs

Early intervention programs are typically designed as prevention

programs—either to divert youth from entering the juvenile justice

system or to prevent youth from continuing their involvement with

the system. The most effective early intervention programs use a

variety of approaches, including mentoring, afterschool support,

employment and training, school-to-work, and college access
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and tailor slots for court-involved youth in job training programs,

or impart academic skills and knowledge through practical

applications and “real work” projects. These programs create

support networks that help youth develop appropriate attitudes and

behaviors for participation in the community and the workforce.

Systems Collaboration

The Task Force identified six primary systems that affect courtinvolved youth: juvenile justice, workforce development, education, social services, community-based organizations, and the

labor market. Effective job preparation requires the engagement

of each of these systems.

There are some promising models of systems collaboration, and

work is ongoing to develop a comprehensive approach to meet

the diverse needs of court-involved youth. Enhancing collaboration, improving communication, and increasing the various

systems’ knowledge of each other are among the challenges

confronted by policymakers, program personnel, and courtinvolved youth.

For Further Information

OJJDP will publish the full Employment and Training for CourtInvolved Youth Report later in 1999. Copies of the Report will be

available from the Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse, 800–638–8736,

or OJJDP’s Web site: www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org. Additional information is also available from the following Web sites: ETA

(www.doleta.gov), or the Home Builders Institute (www.hbi.org).

Heather E. Frey is a Writer/Editor with OJJDP’s Juvenile Justice

Clearinghouse.

FS–99102

services. Intermediaries, such as community-based organizations,

nonprofits, and job brokers, can provide consistent contacts for

court-involved youth who are in the juvenile justice system or

returning to the community after confinement. Similarly, a comprehensive, front-end assessment of a youth’s needs when he or she

enters the juvenile justice system can both facilitate referral to

appropriate services and initiate tracking of the youth’s progress.

Residential Programs

Approximately 30 percent of adjudicated delinquents are committed to residential facilities due to the severity of their needs or their

threat to public safety. To provide quality job training and employment services, residential facilities must address the behavioral,

educational, and social profiles of confined youth; the geographic

isolation of many residential facilities; public safety concerns; and

the belief by employment and training agencies and employers that

confined youth will not meet performance standards. Effective

residential employment and training programs include those that

operate onsite businesses and employ youth at competitive wages,

engage youth in community service and restitution projects,

prepare youth for employment using an entrepreneurship or a

service learning model, or train youth for specific jobs using

industry-approved curriculums. These programs enable youth to

develop practical skills they can use in the workforce after their

release from residential facilities.

Aftercare Programs

Following their release from residential facilities, youth often

remain the responsibility of the State juvenile justice or corrections

agency and continue to require support services. Aftercare can

provide critical services and support a youth’s reintegration into the

community. Aftercare programs that emphasize employment and

training tend to be most effective when youth are in the community, are of legal working age, and have benefited from earlier

services (i.e., counseling, basic skills, and interpersonal skills

development). The most effective aftercare programs typically

involve formal partnerships between the juvenile justice system

and other institutions or organizations. Some programs direct

court-involved youth to employment and training programs, create

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of

Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute

of Justice, and the Office for Victims of Crime.