Juvenile Justice Applied Leadership Network – Jul 10

Posted by Annie E. Casey Foundation on June 20, 2023

Annie E. Casey Foundation invites applications for Juvenile Justice Applied Leadership Network

The Annie E. Casey Foundation is devoted to developing a brighter future for millions of children and young people concerning their educational, economic, social, and health outcomes.

The foundation invites applications for the Juvenile Justice Applied Leadership Network (ALN) from teams seeking to advance the well-being of youth involved with or at risk of involvement with the juvenile justice system. ALN is seeking jurisdictions that are—or are interested in—promoting community-based approaches and programs that divert young people before they are ever referred to the legal system and prevent young people from encountering police in the first place. Prospective jurisdictions should be interested in changing the policies, practices, and organizational culture of their juvenile justice system to shrink the footprint of the system significantly; reduce all forms of confinement; promote healing and rehabilitation for youth with the most serious offense histories; and strengthen their partnerships with community groups.

The program’s fifth session will run from October 2023 to November 2024, and during the 14-month program, participants will identify the changes they want to achieve within their system and community. Team members will then collaborate to devise, implement, refine, and monitor their progress toward meaningful change. For this cycle, the foundation is particularly interested in elevating community-based approaches to improve outcomes for young Black and Latino men. Such efforts may seek to prevent police encounters, divert candidates away from the legal system, or support similar changes that can help level life’s playing field for these at-risk youth.

A team should have between four and six members representing the continuum of support from prevention to reentry after confinement for youth and young adults involved with or at risk of involvement with the justice system. Prospective teams must include at least one juvenile justice or probation agency member. They should consider including members from related public systems and community-based organizations, such as the following types of stakeholders: grassroots or community-based organizations serving young people or community interests; advocates for social justice and racial justice, including faith-based groups; youth-serving systems, such as education, child welfare, workforce development or employment; and young leaders active in their communities, especially in communities most affected by the legal system, or people with direct experience in the youth justice system.

Team members should have the authorization, time, and commitment to participate in the program fully and have a role and the authority (formal or informal) to make changes and decisions in their system or community and move the work back home.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the Annie E. Casey Foundation website.

Deadline: July 10, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. ET