title
PROPOSED GRANT AWARD
Department: Circuit Court of Cook County, Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department
Grantee: Cook County
Grantor: The Annie E. Casey Foundation
Request: Authorization to accept grant
Purpose: This grant will fund the Circuit Court's Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) model detention reform site activities, as well as JDAI supportive services.
Grant Amount: $185,645
Grant Period: 1/1/2014 - 12/31/14
Fiscal Impact: None
Accounts: N/A
Concurrences:
The Budget Department has received all requisite documents and determined the fiscal impact on Cook County, if any.
Summary: Over the last two decades, the Circuit Court of Cook County has been recognized as a model reform site for community-based alternative juvenile detention programs by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. These programs are administered by the court's Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department and have helped to divert tens of thousands of minors from the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. Not only have these programs steadily lowered the population of the JTDC throughout the last 20 years, they also have reduced recidivism and significantly lowered costs for Cook County.
The grant funds will be used to host delegations from other jurisdictions made up of multi-disciplinary juvenile justice professionals. These delegations come to witness firsthand how the court's community-based continuum of alternative programs and services for at-risk court-involved minors achieve success. In 2013, for example, the court hosted groups from Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio and Tennessee, as well as college students from around the country. In addition, the grant will provide resources for advanced training of court practitioners, ancillary services for diversion programs, bus passes for court-involved minors and family members, and supplies. It will also fund program evaluations of JDAI programs to help the court to identify opportunities for further program enhancements and potential service gaps.
end