How does one decide which programs best serve children in the juvenile justice system?
Seventy-eight years ago, a group of judges with a mission to improve the effectiveness of juvenile courts in this country created the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ). Now in its 79th year, the NCJFCJ held its annual conference in Monterey Bay, Calif. Multisystemic Therapy (MST) was there an exhibitor. With sessions like “Smart on Juvenile Justice,” “Rerouting the School-to-Prison Pipeline,” “Keeping Kids in School and Out of Court” and “Addressing School Pushout Among Black Girls,” the conference subject matter really resonated with MST’s mission and goals.
Sophie Karpf, Judge Ramona Gonzalez, and Judge Steven Teske
However, as we looked around the exhibit hall, (please bear with our metaphor) it felt in a way similar to going to the grocery store—walking down the cereal aisle and seeing so many different brands and wondering which to choose. And then, examining the packaging trying to discern which ones are the healthy choices and the right ones for your family. With so many exhibitors representing so many programs, many of which are residential, we had the same feeling. You can’t really tell from the packaging which ones have evidence, which ones will provide the best outcomes for children who wind up in the juvenile-justice system.
Of the 28 vendors in attendance, the majority represented residential schools, programs or academies. There were few community-based, in-home services represented, with MST being the only Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development Model Plus program in attendance. It’s not so surprising then that models like ours serve less than10 percent of the population that can benefit from them.
Do judges have enough information to choose services?
This is a gathering of one of the oldest and largest judicial organizations in the country, and judges are pivotal to connecting juveniles in trouble with the law, with services. It makes you wonder, how they make the best decision for their communities. How do they select the right service, for the right youth, for the right length of time?
Let’s go back to the grocery store cereal analogy. You read the labels, you look at the packaging, you compare the ingredients, and you compare costs. You try as best you can to make an informed decision for your family.
We are certain that judges and communities take way more time thinking about which are the right services than buying Wheaties. But if Kashi Go Lean isn’t on the shelf, how can you pick it? Evidence-based programs like MST are still boutique. You won’t find them in the grocery store just yet. These programs don’t have the marketing muscle or budget to go up against more established brands.
But we do have results. Consistent results that show community-based models like MST are more effective than residential programs and incarceration.
MST works
Our message is quite simple. Do more of what works. And evidence-based programs work. We need to go beyond walking down the aisle of choices to really looking at what is inside—and ensuring what is provided to young people and their families is, indeed, the best option for them.
One can start by taking the Nell Bernstein “my child test”—If this was your child, what service would you want for him or her?
If we start there, together we can achieve a system that reaches more of young people and their families who need evidence-based treatment models the most.
