She currently serves as the Illinois Program Manager for the Models for Change Initiative, which is funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and managed by Loyola University School of Law. In this capacity, Ms. Jacobs works with juvenile justice practitioners, advocates and policy-makers to implement positive changes in the Illinois juvenile justice system. The Illinois Models for Change work has three key areas of focus: increasing reliance upon effective, less-costly community-based services, reducing the disproportionate impact of justice-system contact on youth of color and ensuring that the justice system as a whole responds to the developmental needs and capacities of adolescents, for the benefit of youth, families and communities across the state.