Florida

State Team (Team Lead: Rhianna Scyter)

Contacts:

Linda Alexionok, Co-Founder, SIE CoLab Adaptive Leadership Institute

An Goldbauer, Consultant, Self

Cassandra Jenkins, Executive Assistant, Leon County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller

Jimmy Midyette, Director of Policy, Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center (*Jimmy has since left this position)

Carol Wick, President, Sharity

Capstone Description:

Identify the criminal code(s) and recommend changes to address minors who are arrested for family violence under the domestic violence statutes. Enact legislation that ensure public and family safety is maintained and replace the arrest of a minor with evidenced-based alternatives to the arrest of minors under the domestic violence statute. 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

We have determined that in the current legislative environment, our best course of action is to work on education this session. We will be building partnerships and a coalition of supporters to help identify and support sponsors for the legislation in 2024. Our solution must involve changes to criminal code and a process to move families out of the system and into care. We also need to determine the fiscal impact of what we are suggesting. We have developed the following primary talking points. When girls enter the system (child welfare or DJJ) they have poor outcomes. The current system response to family violence is designed for intimate partner violence (pro-arrest) and does not allow for therapeutic intervention, breaking families apart and moving girls into a system that is not designed to support abuse survivors. We now that moving them into the system results in greater risk of human trafficking and homelessness. A pro-parent approach requires we seek first to support then punish. Our goal is to eliminate pro-arrest and domestic violence arrests for youth under 18 when the victim is a family member and offer the option for officers to issue a civil citation leading to mandatory counseling.

Tiffney Funches' Team

Contacts:

Tiffney Funches, Middle School Program Manager, Girls Inc. of Jacksonville

Juanita Forman-Lee, Director of Operations, Girls Inc. of Jacksonville

Jerri McInturff, Program Manager, Junior Achievement

Brenda Phillips, HS Program Manager, Girls Inc. of Jacksonville

Capstone Description:

We chose to address the lack of education/awareness of resources and information needed for youth and families to begin having serious self-reflective conversations with-in their households. We want to share information on trafficking, generational trauma, different exercises/practices that families can use or implement. Our daily work with girls (youth) allows us to identify that families are still looking and needing support. There are conversations and from personal experiences that we all shared sometimes knowing what and who is in our community willing and able to help. 

We decided to start small then expand. We will host a community day (almost festival style), in which we will bring local organizations and agencies together to set-up information booths, host mini workshops, and provide areas where families can connect with resources for things they need. Food, clothing, living assistance etc. Potential to make events annual in partnership with each other and also school partnerships may be recommended as an alternative for families who express concern of not being able to access resources, or students are at-risk of being sent to alternative schools. 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

We have solidified our team location, date and time for our community event. We are currently working with girls and parents to collect information on what workshops and organizations would be beneficial to them.

Natalie Indelicato's Team

Contacts:

Natalie Indelicato, Associate Professor and Department Chair, Jacksonville University

Ne'Shaun Borden, Assistant Professor and Clinical Coordinator, Jacksonville University

Vinessa Gordon, Research and Grants Analyst, Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center (*Vinessa has since left this position)

Shirley Moon, Community Convener/Educator, Partnership for Child Health (Building a Resilient Jacksonville System of Care)

Capstone Description:

The issue we seek to address directly is raising awareness of the model program, Girls Matters It's Elementary (GMIE), to inform clinical, judicial, and policy change related to school suspension and referral alternatives.  Our group aims to publish an article that increases awareness of the GMIE program, discusses it’s alignment with the Relational Cultural Theory, and provides implications for research, clinical, and policy reform as it relates to elementary school girls and especially girls of color. 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

Since completing the in-person GCP Certificate Program training, our team has met approximately once per month to explore ways that we can apply girl centered practices in our professional and personal lives. Our team composition shifted slightly as Vinessa Gordon transitioned away from the Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center.

We met with Vinessa Gordon and Lawanda Ravoira and received support to move our capstone project forward, including receiving a GMIE replication manual that was written in 2016. We also received a support for an IRB application from the Policy Center to submit with the Jacksonville University IRB application to examine secondary data for our project. We are now finalizing the IRB submission.

Capstone Update (2024):

Dr. Indelicato and Dr. Borden submitted a journal article and two conference presentations regarding the See the Girl: In Elementary (formerly Girl Matters: It's Elementary) program. The article and presentations examine qualitative assessment data between 2018 and 2023, exploring how the program has been helpful for the girls it serves. Girls stated that program counselors offered active listening, therapeutic support, and authenticity and that the program helped them with coping skill development, relationship building, and providing a safe environment.

Diana Johnson and Erin Wolfson's Team

Contacts:

Diana Johnson, Director of Juvenile Court, Office of the Public Defender

Vanessa Cornegay, Juvenile Probation Officer, Department of Juvenile Justice

Pamela Hazel, Assistant State Attorney, 4th Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office

Adair Newman, Director, State Attorney's Office

Michael Kalil, Circuit Court Judge, State of Florida

Kathryn Sheldon, Attorney, Public Defender's Office

Abdul-Hai Thomas, Child and Youth Ombudsperson, Center for Children's Rights (CCR)

Katoia Wilkins, Director of Contract Management, City of Jacksonville - Kids Hope Alliance

Capstone Description:

We wish to address the prevention of girls being arrested and entering the justice system whom are suspected or identified CSEC HT victims. The specific reform we wish to undertake in this project is to divert a girl from arrest to wrap-around care, to include medical services, drug treatment, housing, therapy, and a survivor mentor. 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

Identified and continue to track juveniles that come through via arrest without services who are HT or suspected HT victims.

Katrina Taylor's Team

Contacts:

Katrina Taylor, Director of School Behavioral Health, Duval County Public Schools

Danielle Cherry, High School Secretary, Duval County Public Schools

Amy Jello, Police Sergeant, Duval County School Police

Capstone Description:

Focus on trauma – intergeneration trauma, the power and control being taken away from the girls; Human Trafficking – that Jacksonville is a hub for human trafficking; Judicial System – the girls being convicted of crimes, retraumatizing of the girl, broken trust 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

We have "Human trafficking" now listed on the Full Service reports as a selection should the submitter believe that is a concern with the student. Resources have been put in place utilizing various parties to guarantee we are offering the correct assistance to the students as needed. The district staff as a whole are being trained more extensively on what to look for in the case of human trafficking.

Lesley-Ann Vickerie's Team (co-led with members)

*Note: This project is no longer active.

Contacts:

Andria Bannister, Director, Partnership for Child Health

Gwen Tennant-Evans, Director at Nassau Service Center, Family Support Services of North Florida

Cierra Terrell, Operations Manager, Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center

Lesley-Ann Vickerie, Behavioral Health Manager, Family Support Services of North Florida

Erin Whitacker-Houck, AVP Clinical Program Operations, LSF Health Systems

Capstone Description:

Create a collective of community leaders to do the following: increase education on Girl-Centered Practice for foster parents, Community providers, and Community Based Care Organizations as it relates to their populations served. 

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

We have identified consortium members that we will reach out to individually to request engagement. We identified the overarching goal of the behavioral health consortium's initial meeting and will put together a formal agenda, as well as establish an initial meeting date when we reconvene in January. We have requested assistance with acquiring data to support current BH needs for Duval/Nassau counties.

Logan Farrelly (individual)

Contact:

Logan Farrelly, CINS/FINS Clinical Director, Youth Crisis Center

Capstone Description:

1. Explore the use of peers with lived experience to work with youth utilizing CINS/FINS services (shelter and community counseling)

2. As an agency, increase awareness of healing centered approaches and increase opportunities/experiences to utilize the feedback from the girl's "power with" wheel

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

Progress has been slow and is still in development. I have reached out to former employers that had similar programs to discuss job descriptions, qualifications, and training programs. Because I was working in a different state when I learned about this program, some things vary. Recently, was at a Quality Improvement conference that other agencies presented about their new Youth Advisory Board. I am looking to speak more individually with this agency to learn ideas from to potentially start here as well. The Youth Advisory Board could be used to guide principles of the Young Adult Peer Mentoring program and looking what would be potentially helpful or hurtful for the program and what youth and girls specifically are looking for.

Yvette Angelique Hyater-Adams (individual)

Contact:

Yvette Angelique Hyater-Adams, Principal and Chief Storytelling Officer, Narratives for Change

Capstone Description:

We are drawn to a organize a capstone project that focuses on supporting RADICAL restorative healing and metabolizing emotions for people doing “the work” of supporting young women and girls experiencing trauma. Listening to the heaviness and the “no way out” exhaustion in the hearts and stories from the participants in the room was overwhelming. We asked, who is healing the healers?

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

Yvette is fine tuning the strategy of “who’s healing the healers and helpers” to include well researched practices of Mindfulness-based stress reduction, somatic abolitionism, and eco-womanism as baseline theories to develop tools and resources for girl-centered practitioners. Yvette is interested in integrating racialize cultural nuance—an approach that centers the experience of BIPOC + women to inform how practitioners go about healing themselves, and with the girls they serve, with an awareness of how good practices that support the intersectionality of women and BIPOC can be a benefit to all others. Through research and participating in experiential learning, Yvette will draw out intersecting principles and themes in MBSR, Somatic Abolitionism, and Eco-womanism that will guide surveys and focus groups with girl centered practitioners and girls served, to collect perspectives of what each of these groupings of folk feel they need for themselves for radical healing, and what they perceive the “other” as needing. From this data, a process will be designed and an initial training/workshop developed.

- Met with Lawanda Ravoira early November for technical support. Together, we talked through ideas and possible approaches. We agreed that the cohort we trained with may be a good group to outreach to participate in surveys and focus groups on “healing the healer and helpers” through the lens of healing modalities of MBSR, somatic abolitionism, and eco-womanism. 

- Lawanda will support Yvette in identifying group(s) of girls (via one or a couple of organizations) to participate. 

- Lawanda will support Yvette in identifying a group of practitioners in a particular city, i.e. Daytona, as survey and focus group participants. 

- Yvette is drafting a guiding paper that documents her thinking about pulling together theories of MBSR, Somatic Abolitionism, and Eco-womanism, and their unique threading in offering skills and practices to support “healers and helpers” and the girls served. 

- Yvette is participating in a program offered by Brown University in MBSR, and in February 2023, will apply for their MBSR facilitator certificate program featuring working with BIPOC and marginalized populations. Yvette is interested in integrating Somatic Abolitionism into how she will go about leading MBSR in BIPOC and marginalize communities. She is also holding her awareness and skills in girl-centered practice as an approach in working with marginalized populations, with a special interest in the needs of girls and young women. 

- Yvette and Lawanda meet the end of January to develop a timeline to address these ideas and tasks.

Sheila Jordan (individual)

Contact:

Sheila Jordan, Executive Director, Pace Center for Girls, Volusia-Flagler

Capstone Description:

1. Speak with Judge Jolley and group of diverse stakeholders to partner in implementing my project: The problem regarding system-involved youth issues that I want to address is to decrease the rate of girls’ introduction to the juvenile justice system in Volusia and Flagler, by increasing the awareness of, and access to, trauma-informed approaches (TIA) by diverse girl-serving stakeholders in Volusia-Flagler. Girls’ response/reaction to trauma is perceived as “girls behaving badly” vs “trauma speaking.” This perspective (lack of understanding of what trauma “looks” like) influences/determines the adult response to the girl’s trauma, resulting in DJJ involvement. 

2. Research Volusia and Flagler girl incarceration numbers; and trauma-informed trainings that are having most success with juvenile justice, education, law enforcement, and community organization providers.

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

My project is still largely in the planning/preparation stage. I am gathering resources and stakeholders in order to ensure there is a solid foundation to support a successful launch and sustained engagement throughout the project.

- I have had 2 meetings with Judge Jolley to identify prospective organizations to train. 

- I have secured a volunteer/intern, who has recently started working 3-5 hours/week: building an organization/contact list; researching specific trauma-informed approaches that are most effective with schools and law enforcement; and researching statistics relevant to girls' juvenile justice statistics in Volusia and Flagler counties. 

- I am working to revise my timeline for: determining a training curriculum, inviting organizations, beginning the trainings, and drafting the unified referral form (for edit by the agencies). 

- I have also identified a potential funding source to support the training curriculum and the participation of girls and parents. My progress was significantly delayed by Hurricane Ian. My Center was damaged, and our program has been displaced since late September; so my project work was, essentially paused, until mid-November, as I found a new temporary location and got the center running reasonably well (and on-boarded the intern).

Ann Muno (individual)

Contact:

Ann Muno, Director, Justice for Girls of WA State

Capstone Description:

1. Research feasibility and secure funds for replication of the Florida Girl-centered Practice Certificate Program for WA State.

2. Work with girls in our advocacy program to advocate for 2023 legislative session budget provisos for the girl-centered services program navigator team.

Capstone Update (Dec. 2022):

As of Dec. 2022, I have made the following progress on the Capstone Project: 

1) began to collect data for the OJJDP grant so we are positioned for a potential RFP in 2023 to replicate the Florida Girl-centered Practice Certificate Program for WA State. 

2) began to brainstorm the types of technical support I will need to make progress on my capstone. 

3) began to work with girls in our advocacy program to understand the budget proviso process for the 2023 legislative session.

2017 LGBTQ Florida Team

Contacts:

Dennis Driscoll, Detention Center Superintendent II, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ)

Matthew Fitzgerald, Statewide Placemate and Classification Coordinator, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Bethany Gilot, Statewide Human Trafficking Director, Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF)

Katherine Gomez, Research Analyst, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Elizabeth Phillips, Statewide Reform Coordinator, Department of Juvenile Justice

John Robertson, Program Services Director, Florida Network of Youth and Family Services

Jeff Wenhold, Statewide PREA Coordinator, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Capstone Description:

Strengthen SOGIE competencies and create congruent universal policies across the FL DJJ, DCF, and the Florida Network of Youth and Family Services. More specifically, the tasks include:

1. Surveying staff and youth on SOGIE awareness, perceptions, and practices within state agencies

2. Reviewing agency data systems for the inclusion of SOGIE-related questions and SOGIE data

3. Reviewing and modifying existing policy language across all 3 partnering agencies to be inclusive of LGBTQ youth

Capstone Update (2018):

Policy and Practice Implementation: As of 2018, the team is primarily focused on creating and implementing agency policies and practices. First, they interviewed youth and staff regarding SOGIE policies used by the targeting agencies to inform their next steps. The team also designated safe space and “SOGIE-competent” areas in the shelters, and created documents for visitors and volunteers to become educated on the shelter’s SOGIE policies. As part of the efforts to support agency-wide policy and practice changes, FL DJJ created and piloted a SOGIE training curriculum and modified training requirements for all direct care staff, including probation, detention, and residential staff. In addition, a “SOGIE 101” training was provided to residential commitment management staff and JDAI staff, with an intention to improve conditions for LGBTQ youth within secure detention settings in Florida. SOGIE Data Collection: The team has updated agency protocols to include SOGIE-related questions, allowing them to begin collecting SOGIE data

2015 RED Alachua County, FL Team 

Contacts:

William Halvosa, DMC Coordinator - Gainsville Police Department

Paul Pardue, RED DMC Coordinator - Alachua County Sheriff's Office

Donald Reed, ESE Supervisor - Alachua County Public School

Cheryl Twombly, Community Development Administrator, Circuits 3 & 8 - Department of Children and Families

Shawnta Walker, Juvenile Probation Officer - Department of Juvenile Justice

Jeffrey Weisberg, Executive Director - River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding

Capstone Description:

To reduce the number of arrest and increase the number of diversion referral for youth of color through several key strategies: 

1. Students to Successful Citizens Program, which aims to identify at-risk youth and develop a service plan with youth, their family, and law enforcement officers. 

     a. MOU with the school board will be developed. 

     b. The program will involve training for social workers, law enforcement officers, and school staff. 

     c. The program will identify and target: 

          * Youth who display emotional and behavioral concerns that affect their functioning in school. 

          * Youth with disruptive behaviors, committed misdemeanors, and/or who lack the capacity to succeed in school. 

2. Police/Student Dialogue, which will allow college-aged young adults, particularly youth of color, to offer their perspectives and discuss current events with law enforcement officers. 

3. Communication and Self-Esteem Program for youth in school, on probation, and in detention.

4. Implement a new policy that allows officers and deputies to issue Civic Citations for Domestic incidents involving a child.  

Capstone Update (2018):

1) The team has implemented the Students to Successful Citizens Program and developed an MOU with school board to handle school misconduct and misdemeanor offenses. A "Manning Center" was also established to provide in-school suspension. 2) To improve police-community relationship, the Alachua County team has implemented a Police/Student Dialogue program, where minority youth have the opportunity to discuss civic issues with police officers. The program survey showed improved perception and interaction of police and youth. 3) The team implemented a Communication and Self-Esteem Program, which resulted in lower recidivism rate for youth participated in the program. Together, these efforts resulted in lower arrest rates. In the 2013-2014 school year, there were 105 on campus juvenile arrests; these arrest rates has been steadily decreasing - For the Gainesville Police Department, there was 51 school-based arrests for 2014-2015, 10 arrests for 2015-2016, and 16 arrests for 2016-2017 school years. For the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, the school-based arrests numbers have also been decreasing. There were 48 arrests in 2013-2014, 30 in 2014-2015, and 14 arrests for both 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 school years. Similarly, there has been a reduction in overall arrests for minority youth. There has been about 50 percent decrease in the number of minority youth arrested from 2013 (204 youth) to 2017 (105 youth).

2011 October MSI (Public) Heartland for Children Team

Contacts:

Eva Horner, Chief Operating Officer - Heartland for Children

Teri Saunders, CEO - Heartland for Children

Capstone Description:

Prevent crossover among teen girls in out-of-home care by promoting safe, stable and nurturing relationship via: Implement ACES assessment of childhood trauma, specialized childhood caregiver training (eg: train placements in child informed care, both individual homes and group homes), Family Finding, Family Group Decision Making/Family Team Conferencing, and other best practices. Additionally, assess teen girls' level of complex trauma and risk of crossing over into juvenile justice; Build capacity of caregivers to help teen girls who have experienced abuse/neglect; Build capacity of local mental health and substance abuse providers to recognize and treat trauma; Provide additional resources (such as specialized caregiver training, family team conferences, trauma focused treatment and support for healing, etc).

2013 MSI Brevard County Team

Contacts:

Valerie Holmes, Executive Director - Brevard C.A.R.E.S.

Patricia Nellius, Chief Executive Officer - Brevard Family Partnership

Capstone Description:

Ensure youth aged 12-17 who are at risk of entering and/or dually involved with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems receives formal and informal supports, in an effort to ultimately reduce the number of youth who are dually involved in both the juvenile justice and foster care systems. The main components of this project include:

1. Conducting an analysis of crossover youth and measure the supports available.

2. Developing and implementing protocol to refer crossover youth for Strength and Cultural Discovery and Wraparound Family Team Conference to ensure crossover youth receive services and support needed. 

Capstone Update (2015): 

Brevard C.A.R.E.S. and Brevard Family Partnership have participated in an information sharing template to improve the exchange of information with other system partners; the team completed a crossover youth process map, an interagency point-of-contact list has been updated with a dissemination plan, and several child welfare staff has been trained in the FL Juvenile Justice Information System.

2011 MSI Participant (Private)

Contact:

Myriam Campo-Goldman, President/CEO - Harmony Development Center

Capstone Description:

Analyze data to determine the needs of the crossover youth population and create a diversion process for crossover youth so their needs are met and they do not penetrate the juvenile justice system any further.

2010 MSI Participant (Public)

Contact: 

Cecilia Shepard, Assistant General Counsel - ChildNet

Capstone Description:

Strengthen collaboration between ChildNet with DJJ to efficiently target service provision to improve the likelihood of a successful transition into adulthood for crossover youth. Expanded services will include: joint independent living assessments and transition planning, multi-disciplinary staffings and case reviews, mandatory youth and family engagement in transition planning; and staff training and cross-training.

2012 ISCP Team

Contacts:

Jody Grutza, Director of National Advocacy and Public Policy - Eckerd

Judith Warren, Executive Director - Eckerd

Capstone Description:

Create an information sharing guide for case managers regarding education.

2009 MSI 13th State Judicial Circuit Participant 

Contact:

Jon Johnson, General Magistrate - State of Florida

Capstone Description:

Develop a diversionary program to convert misdemeanor juvenile criminal offenses committed in or around group homes into civil infractions (civil citation program).  This diversionary tactic aims to reduce the number of crossover youth and better address medical and therapeutic needs, with the ultimate goal of seeing challenged foster youths achieve permanency.

2014 RED Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) Team

Contacts:

Erika Gaeta, Government Operations Consultant - Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Mark Greenwald, Director of Research - Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Joshua Kuch, Statewide DMC - Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Gwen Steverson, Chief of Probation - 4th Circuit

Craig Swain, DMC Specialist - Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Capstone Description: 

The team plans to reduce detention holds as a result of failure to appear (FTA) in the Duval Regional Detention Center, as Black youth make up a disproportionate amount of the detention holds for this specific technical violations. The main components of this project include:

1. Collect and analyze data on the reasons for youth to not appear in court.

2. Develop strategies to prevent youth from entering detention as a result of FTA.

3. Modify current warrant/custody order policy so that warrants for FTAs could be attached directly to detention alternatives rather than secure detention.

2010 MSI (Private) Miami Team

Contacts:

Linda Freeman, Executive Director - Trinity Church, Inc.

Shellie Solomon, Chief Executive Officer - Justice & Security Strategies, Inc.

Capstone Description:

Collect data on and identify crossover youth who are also pregnant or parenting parents.  Connect these youth and their children with services.  This is in conjunction with Miami's Baby Court (GAP).

2015 MSI Seminole County Team 

Contact:

Omar Mestre, Supervisor - Seminole County Sheriff's Office

Capstone Description:

To create and implement a diversion program for adolescents previously exposed to violence in the dependency program in order to prevent them from entering the delinquency system. This project will provide evidence-based intervention services to adolescents and families, expand the acceptance criteria, and increase referral agencies for the Youth Intervention Services (YIS) Community Prevention Program. Dedicating four case managers that will work exclusively with adolescents with a history of exposure to violence while involved with the dependency system.

2008 MSI CPI Participant

Contact:

Terri Buckley, Director of Program Development - State of Florida, Department of Juvenile Justice

Capstone Description:

Implement joint case management (between child welfare and juvenile justice) for crossover youth whose transition plan is for independent living.

2009 MSI Participant 

Contact:

Nora Collins-Mandeville, Case Management Coordinator - Child and Family Connections 

Capstone Description:

Establish qualitative case review methodology to improve data collection and analysis and increase knowledge of the characteristics of crossover youth.

2008 MSI CPT Team

Contacts:

Alan Abramowitz, Regional Director - Department of Children and Families, Southern Region

Isabel Afanador, Chief Probation Officer - Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Frances Allegra, Executive Director - Our Kids of Miami-Dad Monroe, Inc.

Charles Auslander, Chief Programs and Operations Office - The Children's Trust

Lester Langer, Associate Administrative Judge - Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida Juvenile Division

Cindy Lederman, Administrative Judge - Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida Juvenile Division

Angela Mahy, Program Administrator - Center for Family and Child Enrichment

Wansley Walters, Director - Miami-Dade County Juvenile Services Department

Capstone Description:

N/A