Page 9 - NCJA Journal_volume1_issue1-final

Abstract

Forging Law Enforcement/School System Partnerships: Using Youth Diversion

Programs to Address the School-to-Prison Pipeline

National juvenile diversion program evaluations have yielded mixed findings and
conflicting results. The current study examines a Youth Diversion Program (YDP),
developed as a result of the law-enforcement/school-system partnership in a large,
southeastern metropolitan county. Quantitative comparisons were conducted among
four groups of youth: those completing the program, those not completing the
program, those rejected at screening, and all youth participating in a post-arrest
diversion program across the state. Results indicate that the YDP is effective in
reducing re-arrest up to 12 months post-completion (p<0.001). Subgroup analyses of
recidivism outcomes showed differences among service providers but failed to explain
the reasons for those differences. Limitations concerning the comparison groups,
missing data, and analyses that would have provided increased rigor to the study, are
discussed. Implications and recommendations for addressing the school-to-prison
pipeline by developing new and strengthening existing law enforcement/ school system
partnerships are provided.

Keywords: juvenile justice, diversion, school-to-prison pipeline, law enforcement/community
partnerships, smart decarceration, pre-arrest diversion, police-based diversion, school-based
diversion

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