Texas

2023 YIC Texas Department of Juvenile Justice Team

Contacts:

Shandra Carter, Executive Director, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Christopher Ellison, Director of Training, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Lacey Evans, Deputy Director of Treatment, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Sean Grove, Chief of Staff, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Antonio Houston, Facility Superintendent, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Emily Knox, Director of Research, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Autumn Lord, Clinical Director for Forensic Mental Health Services, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Alan Michel, Senior Director Secure Facilities, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Erin Nemons, Manager of Institutional Clinical Services, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Evan Norton, Senior Director of Integrated Treatment and Intervention, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Henry Schmidt, Director of Structured Programming and Accountability, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Cameron Taylor, Senior Strategic Advisor, Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Capstone Description:

The Texas Juvenile Justice Department team seeks to employ a multi-pronged strategy aimed at streamlining the agency’s treatment, behavior, and case management plans. This includes developing a unified treatment plan across TJJD; enhancing the in-patient care model; and regularly consulting staff about improvements in engaging partners including interdivisional TJJD staff, youth, families, and external experts (to include the Dialectical Behavior Therapy – Linehan Board of Certification).

2017 LGBTQ TJJD 

Contacts:

Teresa Stroud, Senior Director, State Programs and Facilities Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Debbie Unruh, Chief Independent Ombudsman Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Capstone Description:

The teams aims to improve facility culture and safety in secure settings for LGBTQ youth, increase staff understanding of LGBTQ issues, and clearly defining practices and procedures for SOGIE youth in the Texas Juvenile Justice Department  

2015 YIC Texas Team

Contacts:

Thomas Adamski, Director of Secure Facilities - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Chelsea Buchholtz, Chief of Staff - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Madeleine Byrne, Director of Treatment - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Jill Mata, General Counsel - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Judge Laura Parker, Judge, 386th District Court - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Rebecca Walters, Director of Integrated State-Operated Programs - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

James Williams, Senior Director of Probation and Community Services - Texas Juvenile JusticeDepartment

Capstone Description:

Increase the flexibility of youth scheduling and improve treatment services for youth in custody by:

1. Developing two pilot programs for youth with a GED or high school diploma:

     a. The first pilot program will allow a few selective youth to engage in the community and seek off-campus employment instead of attending school.

     b. The second pilot program will identify youth with high treatment needs and provide them with more intensive treatment instead of attending school.

2. Reviewing facility and education policies to identify barriers to implementing the pilot programs.

Capstone Update (2016):

While the Capstone Project is in its nascent implementation phase, it has facilitated improvement in interagency collaboration and led to success for youth who have gone through the pilot programs. Preliminary TJJD data showed that youth’s participation in the Capstone Program at one facility is associated with 53 percent average decrease in behavioral incidents. Staff also reported an increase in youth engagement as a result of the pilot programs. The team’s work was featured at the American Correctional Association (ACA) Conference in Boston in 2016: http://cjjr.georgetown.edu/news/cjjrs-michael-umpierre-and-tjjd-staff-present-at-aca-conference/.

2013 YIC Texas Participant  

Contact:

Jerome Williams, PREA Coordinator - Texas Juvenile Justice Department

Capstone Description:

To improve the local facility leadership and staff reporting culture of sexual abuse, sexual assault, and sexual harassment through implementing the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards and build upon the outcomes from Comprehensive Approach to Promote Sexual Safety in Youth (CAPSSY) Project (a Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistant Grant funded project in 2011).

Capstone Update (2016): 

Jerome incorporated culture change of safety, especially sexual safety, in all facility-level programming (e.g., PBIS, education, youth group sessions, staff orientation and annual training requirements) and utilized data collection/analysis to evaluate the results of this effort. In 2015, TJJD has 6 facilities that are PREA compliant, and 4 additional facilities will achieve PREA compliance by the end of Aug. 2015. In 2016, 2 of the TJJD facilities achieved 100% compliance, with 4 PREA standards being rated as "exceeding" during PREA audit. The project has served over 3000 youth and trained over 3500 staff in PREA.  

2013 ISCP Texas Team

Contacts:

Denise Brady, Senior Policy Attorney - Texas Department of Family and Protective Services

Kelly Kravitz, Foster Care Education and Policy/Title 1 Part D Coordinator - Texas Education Agency

Tiffany Roper, Assistant Director - Supreme Court of Texas Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families

Nina Taylor, Director of Information Analysis, Research and Analysis Division - Texas Education Agency

Catherine Walsh, Independent Consultant - Results for Children

Capstone Description:

To assess the current school mobility among foster students, the team will track changes in foster care students' school placements in Texas through the collaboration between the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS).

Capstone Update (2015): 

The team has developed a shared definition and a clear method to measure school mobility; the team has also developed cross-tabs to compare educational outcomes for foster care students. As a result of these initiatives, the team has established a stronger collaboration between education, child welfare, and court systems in Texas, and a Foster Care and Education Committee was created to oversee the implementation of the Texas Blueprint report. Last but not least, Bill 3748, which requires the development of a data-sharing MOU between the state child welfare and higher education agencies, was passed.

Sept. 2023 ARJE Bexar County, Texas Team

Contacts:

Chellie Fernandez, Manager, City of San Antonio

Viviana Guillen, Youth Development Mentor, American Indians in Texas Spanish Colonial Missions

Adrienne House; Program Director; San Antonio Fighting Back, Inc.

Terry Hubbard, Outreach Worker, San Antonio Mental Health

Karl Johnson; Deputy Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Oscar Leos; Assistant District Attorney, Bexar County Criminal District Attorney's Office

Jill Mata; Chief Juvenile Probation Officer; Bexar County, Texas

Doshie Piper, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, University of the Incarnate Word

Holly Pompa, Step Up Texas: Training and Technical Assistance Professional and Trauma-Informed Program Manager, Bexar County Office of Criminal Justice: Policy Planning and Programs

Jacqueline Valdes, 386th District Court Judge, State of Texas

Ramon Vasquez, Community Engagement Manager, American Indians in Texas

Jeannie Von Stultz, Deputy Chief of Mental Health Services, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Capstone Description: 

The Bexar County ARJE Committee, in partnership with Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute (MMPHI), seeks to reduce over-incarceration and racial disproportionality in the juvenile justice system by strengthening community-based systems of support for youth. Capitalizing on funded resources provided by the OJJDP Continuum of Care grant, the team aims to co-create an equitable continuum of care capable of meeting youth’s needs within their home communities.

2019 Length of Stay Policy Academy Bexar County Team

Contacts:

Jane Davis, Chief, Bexar County District Attorney Office, Juvenile Section, Bexar County

Stevie Gonzales, Executive Director of Support Services, East Central Independent School District

Pernilla Johansson, Manager of Data Analytics, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Linda Johnson

Jayme Lyon, Clinical Manager, Bexar County Juvenile Probation

Jill Mata, Assistant Chief General & General Counsel, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

William Shaw, Associate Judge, Bexar County

Tamara Vasquez, Facility Administrator, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Jeannie Von Stultz, Deputy Chief of Mental Health Services, Bexar County Juvenile Probation

Carlos Zuniga, Deputy Chief Probation Officer, Bexar County Juvenile Probation

2017 YIC Bexar County

Contacts:

Estefania "Stevie" Gonzales, Executive Director of Personnel & Coordinated Services, East Central I.S.D

Jayme Lyon, Clinical Manager, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Anne Thomas, Deputy Chief Clinical Services Institutions, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department *Note: Anne retired  and is no longer involved in the Capstone work.

Tamara Vasquez, Assistant Facility Administrator, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Lynne Wilkerson, Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, Bexar County 

Rose Zebell, Juvenile Division Chief, Bexar County DA's Office

Carlos Zuniga, Deputy Chief Probation Officer, Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department

Capstone Description:

To build readiness for meaningful academic and employment opportunities as youth transition out of the secure facility through expanding current academic, career and technical pathways for youth. The strategies include:

1. Establishing a Leadership Team to oversee strategic planning and ensure sustainability

2. Developing alternative academic, vocational, technical, and life skills programs

3. Creating stronger youth and family engagement strategies to enhance transition-planning

4. Building capacity for data collection and analysis 

Capstone Update (2019):

The team has expanded career and technical education options for residents by partnering with Goodwill Industries of San Antonio and Alamo Workforce Solutions. In 2018, Goodwill has taught fifty-seven class sessions in ten new courses to help residents build career-related knowledge and skillsets. Through these courses with Goodwill, residents can obtain Texas Food Handlers certification, TABC certification, and OSHA-10 certification. These certifications allow residents to be job-ready when they re-enter the community. 

In addition, the Career and Technical Education Specialist, a newly created position at the Krier Center, ensures each youth receive individualized educational and/or career services. The passing of House Bill 2442 supported the team’s effort in individualizing residents’ schedule, allowing a smoother transition between academic and therapeutic programming, as well as a better teacher-student ratio (from 1:12 to 1:8). The changes in students’ daily schedule reduced the behavioral incidents from 276 to 148 per semester.

The team has also strengthened the Krier Center’s youth and family engagement efforts through engaging parents in planning for Parent-Teacher-Facility Nights, revamping the orientation process for youth and parents, administering family feedback forms, and including families in the Krier Center’s Admission, Review and Dismissal Meetings.

Capstone Update (2024):

Despite challenges posed by the COVID pandemic, the team remains focused on their original Capstone Project. Their Career and Technical Education (CTE) Specialist has taken over many of the services that were previously offered by community partners, as these partnerships have been strained by the impact of the pandemic. Current services include three vocational certificate programs (Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, Food Handlers, and OSHA-10), the Merging 2 Worlds Curriculum, and classes on resume building, job applications, and career exploration. The team is also beginning a program called YouthBuild, where a community partner will teach youth in the facility basic construction skills; youth in this program will receive credit toward a journeyman's certification and monetary compensation. 

The team also continues to partners with East Central Independent School District to academically assess each youth and provide support for credit recovery, special education services, and 504 plans. The team hosts Parent/Teacher nights once a semester. Additionally, their Clinical team provides weekly DBT skills groups for parents, monthly family game nights, and a yearly Christmas dinner for families with youth in placement. The Krier Youth Council is also still active, giving youth the chance to impact programming, incentives, and facility-wide events.

2022 TJP El Paso County Team

Contacts:

Tiffany Aguirre, Youth Advocate

Richard Ainsa, Associate Judge/Referee, El Paso County

Emily Dawson, Trial Team Chief, El Paso County Attorney

Josue Lachica, Project Manager, Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute

Maria Ligon, Associate Judge, 65th District Court

Marc Marquez, Deputy Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, El Paso County, Texas Juvenile Justice Center

Rosie Medina, Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, El Paso County Juvenile Probation Department

Janel Morgan, Director of Probation Services, El Paso County Juvenile Probation Department

René Vargas, Juvenile Unit Chief, El Paso County Public Defenders Office

Capstone Description:

The El Paso County team seeks to reduce the number of youth detained and revoked for technical violations; reduce the system involvement of low-risk youth and engage community partners to drive diversion and prevention efforts holistically; and create a holistic system of care that focuses on the family system to promote positive youth development and define a success criterion beyond recidivism. To do so, the team will work with a variety of stakeholders to: create and implement a new Judgment of Probation; pilot a new diversion program for youth who commit particular school-based offenses; and develop a community action plan designed to provide a more holistic system of care to serve youth and families.

Capstone Update (2024):

Diversion: Related to diversion, the team has implemented a validated risk assessment and family interview at the initial intake appointment, completed a SIM mapping of diversion points, created a diversion program for youth referred on misdemeanor Assault Family Violence charges, continued to divert youth referred on felony THC offenses to a 30-day diversion program, and collaborated with Socorro Independent School District to develop a first-offender program (to be launched in 2025). The team also hopes to enhance the Juvenile Court Conference Committee Diversion Program in 2025.

Court Orders: The team formed a workgroup to create a new Judgement of Probation (JOP) that would be easily understood by youth and parents. This JOP was released in March 2024 and reduced the terms of probation from 27 to 9. The group continues to meet to identify next steps for aligning court documents with the new JOP.

Community Resources: The team surveyed youth at all points of the probation system to identify areas of interest and obstacles to participation in community programming. They also created a Community Resource guide JPD staff and use and add to as they refer families to services.

Facility Care: The team has introduced the Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) initiative at its Challenge Facility to meet the complex needs of youth with multiple ACEs.

OBP Pilot: This pilot provides supports to families through a strengths-based approach, offering incentives for progress and positive behavior change. The pilot also connects families with education, employment, and community resources. The pilot has served 22 youth and families to date and provided 149 incentives.

Home Detention Program Redesign: The team identified the Home Detention Program in El Paso County as not in alignment with the TJP initiative, as it requires daily home visits, keeps youth at home except for court-ordered activities, and forces youth who violate home detention conditions deeper into the system. In February 2024, the team formed a workgroup of probation officers and field compliance officers. This group is tasked with making Home Detention more client-centered and strengths-based as well as incorporation positive youth development and family empowerment.

2008 MSI CPI Guadalupe County Participant

Contact:

Elizabeth Kolb, County Attorney - Guadalupe County

Capstone Description:

1. Map and fill gaps in services (including mapping and blending funding).

2. Creating mentoring program for crossover youth.

3. Creating monthly parenting program between nurses and young mothers.

2022 TJP Harris County Team

Contacts:

Amanda Downing, Assistant Public Defender, Harris County Public Defender's Office

Caesar Gerrard, Juvenile Probation Officer, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department

Henry Gonzales, Executive Director, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department

Gabriela Lastres, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo

Brian Martinez, Administrator, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department

Michelle Moore, Judge, Harris County 314th District Court

Allen Otto, Chief Attorney, Harris County District Attorney's Office

Rafael Sarango, Executive Director, Center for Urban Transformation

Latricia St. Jules, Family Engagement Specialist, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department

Steve Willing, Deputy Director, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department

Capstone Description:

The Harris County team seeks to expand and bolster community-based services and supports to provide non-juvenile justice administered diversion approaches, ultimately creating a diversion system where services are provided by community-based entities to meet youths’ identified needs. To do so, the team will pilot a diversion program in partnership with Harris County Resources for Children and Adults (HCRCA), secure local funding for a Youth Diversion Center, and allocate funds from the Harris County Youth Justice Reinvestment Fund to support existing community-based diversion services.

2009 MSI San Antonio Participant

Contact:

Kathy Paradise, Interim Program Director - The Center for Health Care Services

Capstone Description:

Gather and analyze data on youth who participate in the county's new Therapeutic Foster Care program, with a focus on data regarding the following two factors: the number of youth on probation re-entering foster care and the number of those who are reunified with their biological family.

April 2023 ARJE Travis County Team

Contacts:

Cory Burgess, Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, Travis County Juvenile Probation Department

Ali Crowley, Assistant District Attorney, Team Lead of the Juvenile Division; Travis County District Attorney's Office

John Hathaway, Retired Judge

Daniel Hoard, Deputy Chief, Health Services; Travis County Juvenile Probation Department

Rhonda Hurley, District Judge, State of Texas

Jasmine Jenkins, Racial & Social Justice Officer/Licensed Psychologist, Travis County Juvenile Probation Department

Tonya Mills, Director of IT and Research, Travis County Juvenile Probation Department

Julissa Muñiz, Postdoctoral Researcher, The University of Texas at Austin

Kim Patton, Executive Director, Life Anew Restorative Justice

Chris Sauceda, Division Manager Court Services, Travis County Juvenile Probation Department

Pablo Reynaga, Sergeant, Austin ISD Police Department

Description:

The Travis County Team seeks to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in referrals from the Austin Independent School District Police Department to Juvenile Probation through creating a community resource catalog and, in collaboration with multi-system partners, expanding a school-based restorative justice diversion program that provides wraparound services.

April 2023 ARJE Williamson County Participant

Contact:

Lorna Hermosura, Project Director of STEP UP Texas & Assistant Professor of Instruction, The University of Texas at Austin

Capstone Description:

Lorna and her team at STEP UP Texas completed a Sequential Intercept Model Map to identify priority areas of improvement in the youth legal system. The team formed workgroups in each of these priority areas, each tasked with completing action items aimed at reducing racial and ethnic disparities as well as overall system contact.

2009 MSI San Antonio Participant

Contact:

Kathy Paradise, Interim Program Director - The Center for Health Care Services

Capstone Description:

Gather and analyze data on youth who participate in the county's new Therapeutic Foster Care program, with a focus on data regarding the following two factors: the number of youth on probation re-entering foster care and the number of those who are reunified with their biological family.