Division of Juvenile Corrections (DJC)

JUVENILE CORRECTIONS TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

MEETING MINUTES

 April 30, 2003 - Madison

Attending:

Members - Randine Celusta, Dane County (for Dave Sarow); John Chrest, Wood County; Lynn Green, Dane County, Mary Jo Keating, Outagamie County; Kathy Malone, Milwaukee County; Ann Wondergem, Sheboygan County; Jim Moeser, Silvia Jackson, Elaine Olson, Pam Eitland, and Shelley Hagan, WI-DOC-DJC; and Kitty Kocol and Mark Campbell, WI-DHFS.

Others - Joy Hughes, WI-DOC; Sarah Diedrick, WI Counties Association

The minutes were approved with one correction (Mary Jo Keating): Issue #7 at the top of page 2 should read "Assessing the need to develop specific juvenile justice standards for any services provided under Ch. 938."

1. A. DPI expulsion study. The group discussed optional approaches to studying youth expulsion if DPI is not able to provide the necessary assistance in accessing school boards' identifying information about expelled youth. Jim Moeser proposed the creation of a small group to devise a proposed new approach, which would report at the next TAC meeting. Pam Eitland will staff the group, and Ann Wondergem volunteered to talk with her staff about possibly convening it. John Chrest and Mary Jo Keating offered to help. In implementing the new approach, the TAC will ask WCHSA and DPI for support.
2. Inter-departmental collaboration. Jim Moeser reported on a number of initiatives to promote inter-departmental collaboration. The "visions" study authorizing language was removed from the 2003-05 Budget Bill as being non-budget-related; however, DHFS has the opportunity to introduce the study via separate legislation. The idea of a Family Policy Board to provide state-level coordination of programs affecting families is being promoted assertively by its backers. Following Jim's report, there was a lengthy discussion of ideas for how the state can promote better outcomes for at-risk youth and their families.
3. CFSR. Mark Campbell noted that this summer's federal Children and Family Services Review will include juvenile justice out-of-home placement cases that are documented in HSRS or WiSACWIS. DFHS (John Tuohy) is looking to recruit a county reviewer for the juvenile justice cases. (Handout) DJC has volunteered Pam Eitland to be a juvenile justice case reviewer also. Silvia Jackson will participate in the August 19, 2003 briefing of the review.

DOC. Silvia Jackson noted that the Governor required DOC to reduce the number of Central Office positions by 200, with most of the reductions effective in early May. In DJC, 18 positions had to be cut, including two of the four Juvenile Services Specialists and the Youth Aids Contract Coordinator. We will send out an Administrator's Memo detailing the new and revised assignments in DJC-CO, and we ask for your patience as we try to maintain important services to counties with a much-reduced staff. Further cuts may come in the next few months as DJC tries to cope with ever-diminishing admissions to the state juvenile correctional institutions.

DHFS. Mark Campbell reported the elimination of numerous positions in the Division of Children and Family Services, including 15 Assistant Area Administrator positions and 16 positions in the state adoption unit. DHFS is very concerned about the loss of the AAA positions, and is trying to provide information that might lead to a reconsideration of Joint Finance's decision. Other regions will assume the work done by state adoption units that are eliminated.

Due to staff reduction in the Corrections Training Center, DOC will offer less training to counties through CTC than has been offered in the past several years. A discussion by the TAC on possible training directions and resources through DJC focused on the Training Partnerships, and the extent to which the Partnerships' concentration on child welfare social work could be expanded to cover topics related primarily to juvenile justice and direct services. TAC members agreed that training on specialized topics and technical skills is still needed. The availability of non-IV-E matching funds would likely be a prime factor in such an expansion. Discussion of potential topics for county JJ training was put off until the next TAC meeting, to give participants the chance to discuss training needs with their staff and others. We'd like to keep talking about what the gaps are in currently-available training for county juvenile justice programs, and how best to fill the identified gaps.

The date of the next TAC meeting has been changed. The new date is Wednesday, July 16, from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm. As there were no volunteers to host the meeting elsewhere, it will be at DOC headquarters in Madison.

DOC/DJC/OMB/SH