NCJ Number
232453
Date Published
2010
Length
36 pages
Annotation
Reclaiming Futures (RF) is an initiative launched by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to improve outcomes for drug-involved youth in the juvenile justice system; this report describes several critical issues that were part of the context for the RF initiative as well as the RF evaluation.
Abstract
Specifically, this report examines the concept of evidence-based decisionmaking and places RF within the context of this concept. RF is a comprehensive approach to system change that involves community organizing, managerial reforms, communication efforts, leadership dynamics, inter-organizational cooperation, and treatment technologies. The Urban Institute's evaluation found that many RF initiatives were not evidence-based, meaning they have involved strategies and activities not derived from random-assignment studies with statistically significant effects. This report describes two such critical features of the RF approach: positive youth development and cultural competence. The report discusses the manner in which each of the 10 communities involved in the RF demonstration effort designed its activities with the underlying premise that juvenile-justice involved youth who also used drugs and alcohol needed something more than the typically punitive juvenile justice response. The RF credo is "More treatment, better treatment, and beyond treatment." "Beyond treatment" often meant embracing the principles of a youth development approach that encompasses skill building, leadership, decisionmaking opportunities, and community and family engagement. Under the RF philosophy, it was also expected that youth treatment and development activities would be sensitive and relevant to the cultural backgrounds and perspectives of the youth. Although positive youth development and cultural competence are significant features of RF implementation, the components and outcomes of these features have not been subjected to rigorous research and evaluation. Thus far, the strong results documented in the evaluation reports suggest that these approaches may one day deserve to be considered core principles of effective juvenile justice practice. 3 tables and extensive references