Colorado

2022 LGBTQ Colorado DYS Team

Contacts:

Fitzgerald Clark, Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion; Colorado Division of Youth Services

Taylor Garza, Youth and Staff Safety Coordinator (PREA Coordinator/Risk Management Coordinator), Colorado Division of Youth Services

Brandy Harper, Deputy Administrator - Colorado Juvenile Parole Board, Colorado Department of Human Services

Theo Isoz, Training Specialist, Colorado Department of Human Services

Spiro Koinis, Restorative Justice / Victim Services Coordinator; State of Colorado, Department of Human Services, Division of Youth Services

Yetunde Kuforiji, Medical Operations Coordinator; Colorado Department of Human Services, Division of Youth Services

Cherise Wells, Assistant Director; Behavioral Health & Medical Services, Division of Youth Services

Capstone Description:

The Colorado DYS Team seeks to create an environment that is welcoming to, understanding of, and provides equitable treatment for staff and youth who are members of the LGBTQ+ community. To advance these goals, the team will develop and deliver a new training for DYS staff focused on LGBTQ+ issues, update DYS policies pertaining to LGBTQ youth, and create a procedural matrix to guide staff in making housing decisions for transgender and nonbinary youth at DYS Youth Service Centers.

Capstone Update (2024):

The team developed a new training for staff to learn how to better support LGBTQIA+ staff and youth. The team is considering bringing this training to all staff members and is currently discussing the best way to integrate it (through staff workshops, onboarding, and more). The goal is for the program to be approved and implemented beginning January 2025. The team is also working to update DYS Policy and has already changed the Statement of Preference form, replacing it with the Affirmation of Gender Identity Form to include gender expansive youth. 

2018 LGBTQ Colorado DHS Team 

Contacts:

Pearl Bell, Youth Engagement Specialist Colorado Department of Human Services

John Ferullo, Director of Staff Development Colorado Department of Human Services

Capstone Description

The team seeks to increase the quality of service delivery, support a culture of inclusivity, and apply best practices to working with LGBTQ/GNC youth. More specifically, the team plans to focus on collecting accurate data and creating a best practices guide for LGBTQ/GNC youth.

2016 RED Colorado State Team

Contact: 

Bob Bauman, Coordinator, Senate Bill 94, 8th JD Weld Adolescent Resources

Troy Krotz, Principal, Poudre School District

Greg Otte, Deputy Chief Probation Officer, State of Colorado Judicial Branch

Carolyn Pannell, District Court Magistrate, State of Colorado, 8th Judicial District

Hava Simmons, Social Casework Manager, Larimer County Department of Human Services

Capstone Description:

To reduce the overrepresentation of Latino youth committed to the Division of Youth Corrections by analyzing historical data, engaging families as well as the Latino community leaders, and supporting probation officers to develop rapport with at-risk youth.

Capstone Update (2019):

The team has collected baseline data and will continue to analyze DYS data on a yearly basis. The commitment data from 2016-2017 showed that there’s a high RRI (overrepresentation) in the Latino population. As a result, the team and partnering agencies recruited bi-lingual/bi-cultural officers, case managers, and therapists to avoid the need for translators. Almost all the Probation staff are trained on the Strategies for Behavioral Change model, which aims to remove inherit bias from the decision-making process and encourage staff to provide rewards for positive behaviors. In addition, the team has continued to facilitate and participate in community events. One particular event, the Evening Charla with Juvenile Justice stakeholders and the Latinx community, was planned and presented by La Cocina in conjunction with the CO RED team, providing opportunities for community members and staff from the court, probation, DA's office, youth detention center, and child welfare to interact.

2016 SJP Denver Participant

Contact: 

Amy Bishop, Education Advocate, Center for Governmental Training

Capstone Description:

Address the lack of consistency in educational planning and promote educational planning through collaboration, training delivery and consultation for court-involved youth in Douglas County.

Capstone Update (2017):

Douglas County has instituted a full-time Educational Navigator, who will provide direct educational planning for child welfare youth removed from home. Additionally, Douglas County Human Services has implemented new practices for Best Interest Determination Procedures, which include sending a notification email to the school district CWEL and the Education Navigator. Douglas County also now has an Education Action Team. The members meet monthly to examine current system procedures, address service gaps, and work with key stakeholders to encourage consistency in upholding new procedures. Amy has also worked with Douglas County to complete the final draft of the County Guide for Educational Planning and launched a website for free education stability consulting.

2015 SJP Denver Participant 

Contact: 

Janelle Krueger, Program Manager - Colorado Department of Education

Capstone Description:

To develop training content for a multi-disciplinary workgroup to address the school-to-prison pipeline issue. The workgroup will include local law enforcement agencies, school resource officers (SROs), school administrators, community-based advocacy group staff, and youth-serving state agency staff. 

Capstone Update (2017):

Janelle and her team has expanded the training audience to a school-community training that include multiagency representatives, including juvenile justice, mental health, and social services. They developed training curriculum to address how best to approaches to school-based incidents. The first "trial run" started in the summer of 2017 in the second largest school district in Colorado, Jefferson County School District. 

2014 Diversion Denver Team

Contacts:

Patrick Hedrick, Deputy Director - Denver Public Safety Youth Programs

Benita Martin,  Director of Juvenile Diversion - Denver District Attorney's Office

Chy Montoya, City Council Member - Councilman Albus Brooks, District 8

Ann Padilla-Parras, Juvenile Diversion Officer - Denver District Attorney's Office

Charlotte Stephens, Director - City 7 County of Denver Public Safety Department

Tiffany Vu, Supervisor - Denver Public Safety Youth Programs

Capstone Description:

Implement Strengthening Families Program as a diversion service for younger youth. Implement risk assessment and criteria for matching; Collect data on behavior change from youth and parents as a result of diversion; Staff training on Community of Practice evidence-based practice in motivational interviewing; Implement quality assurance process of supervisor review to ensure staff follow established evidence-based practices; Add component to case review so that potential needs and gaps in services can be identified (rather than just serving to provide time for supervision of the worker)

Capstone Update (2015):

The team is on track to complete the implementation of the diversion program and will continue to track the progress and outcomes. The team runs 3 sessions of the Strengthening Families Program and reduced the cost to implement the program significantly. The team also worked with the OMNI Institute to create pre/post diversion surveys and will begin using them in October 2015.

2008 MSI CPT Denver Team

*Note: This Capstone Project is no longer ongoing. Two team members, Judge Ashby and Shawn Cohn, have retired, and the other team members have moved on to work in other youth service fields in Colorado.

Contacts:

Karen Ashby, Presiding Judge - Denver Juvenile Court

Sara Boylan, Director - Denver Collaborative Partnership

Shawn Cohn, Chief Probation Officer - Denver Juvenile Probation

Barbara Downing, School Psychologist - Denver Public Schools

Allen Pollack, Youth and Family Division Director - Denver Department of Human Services

Gretchen Russo, Liaison - Denver Juvenile Court/Denver Department of Human Services

Diane Skufca, Assistant Regional Director - Division of Youth Corrections, Colorado Department of Human Services

Capstone Description:

n/a

November 2019 RED Pueblo County, CO Team 

*Note: This project is no longer active.

Contacts:

Michael Bayer, Director of School Culture Wellness and Safety, Pueblo City Schools D-60

Felicia Colorado-Ball, Crossover Liaison / Senior Caseworker, Pueblo County Department of Human Services

James Edgar, Supervisor Outpatient Services, Youth & Families Health Solutions

Suzette Keating, Child Welfare Program Administrator, Pueblo County

Kelsey Moore, Coordinator, Trestle, Inc.

Charlie Taylor, Police Captain, Pueblo Police Department

Steve Vigil, Probation Officer, 10th Judicial District, State of Colorado

Cheryl Vincent, High School Assistant Principal, School District 70

Capstone Description:

The Pueblo County team seeks to reduce school citations for Hispanic students in Pueblo schools by utilizing a matrix that provides alternatives to citations, including school- and community-based supports. The project will include partners from Pueblo School District 60, Health Solutions, Department of Human Services, State of Grace, and Pueblo Municipal Court.  

2011 MSI San Luis Valley Team (Public)

Contacts:

Cindy Cotten, Senate Bill 94 Coordinator - 12th Judicial District Probation Department

Bill Gurule, Chief Probation Officer - 12th Judicial District Probation, Colorado

Kari Harp, HB 1451/Interagency Oversight Group Coordinator, Alamosa/Conejos - Joint Interagency Oversight Group and the San Luis Valley Mental Health Center

Judy McNeilsmith, Director, Community Resource Development - San Luis Valley Community Mental Health Center

Laurie Rivera, Deputy Director of Services - Alamosa County Department of Human Services

Clarissa Woodworth, Director of Development - San Luis Valley Community Mental Health Center

Capstone Description:

Infuse family engagement and joint case planning into implementation of CYPM.

Capstone Update (2015):

The team has provided cross systems training (including SB94, Probation, Human/Social Services, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse) and judicial training for CYPM staff and developed standardized lists and operations manual for working with cross-systems youth. The Project has merged into its CYPM work.

Capstone Update (2024):

The County is still using the Crossover Youth Practice Model, but are no longer collecting data after the Colorado legislature made crossover work mandatory. They continue to see the benefits of the model for the crossover youth they serve.

2015 DIV Weld County Participant

Contact:

Kirsta Britton, Director of Diversion - Weld County District Attorney's Office

Capstone Description:

Develop a detailed operations manual that reflects the historical policies and procedures and current functions of the Weld County Juvenile Diversion Program through creating standardized criteria for diversion acceptance, adopting a screening tool, and formalizing key decision points.