Rae-Anne Montague, Joe Coyle, and Jeanie Austin

1. Youth Empowerment in the Champaign County Juvenile Detention Center Library Rae-Anne Montague, Joe Coyle, and Jeanie Austin Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign • Why Are Juvenile Detention Center Libraries Important? • Nearly 100,000 youth are held in detention facilities on any given day. (OFJJDP, 2009). • 1/3 of juvenile offenders read below the fourth grade level (Hayes, 2007). • Most juvenile offenders who exit detention • facilities after the age of 16 do not return to • any formal school program (Vacca, 2008). • 2/3 of prison inmates dropped out of high school (Hayes, 2007). • Goals • Youth will have an improved sense of • community resources and public library • services. • Youth will be more likely to seek out • information related to their interests. • Literacy rates of incarcerated youth will be • improved. • Juvenile offender recidivism rates will • decrease. • Librarians and GSLIS affiliates will have new opportunities to engage in offering services in several essential areas, including library outreach, collection development, and information literacy. • Community groups will collaborate and engage with an otherwise removed population. The Champaign County Juvenile Detention Center (CCJDC) is a short-term correctional facility with a resident capacity of 40. The majority of the CCJDC resident population is from historically underserved groups (75-77% of youth are African American). The Peer Ambassadors A group of African-American and Latino/a youth that provides peer mentoring, counseling and education in Champaign County. This youth organization initiated the juvenile detention center library project. To ensure sustainability, this project takes a collaborative approach to renovating library services. The collaboration currently involves the following organizations. Urbana Free Library The detention center library is being modeled after Urbana Free in order to increase the youths’ familiarity with public library organization. The library also contributes materials to the detention center. Creating the Collaboration The dedicated staff at the Champaign County Detention Center have maintained a library for many years. Through focus groups sessions with youth at the detention center, the Peer Ambassadors identified a need for materials that reflected the lived experiences and interests of the residents. The Peer Ambassadors partnered with the Graduate School of Library and Information Science to rebuild the collection and link to the public library. • Next Steps • Continue building collaboration • Collection development • Create programming • Fund raising • Link to curriculum • Develop youth-centered research • Disseminate • Addressing the Information Needs of Youth in the Detention Center • Provide access to a range of interesting and relevant materials.  • Hold book talks and discussion groups on stories and themes that emphasize decision making skills and restorative outcomes. • Collaborate with peer mentoring organizations to create programming that is empowering and responds to the residents’ interests. • Develop library skills training so that residents can effectively utilize the public library as a community and educational resource upon release. Graduate School of Library and Information Science Staff and students from the school support the project by providing input on organization, materials selection, fundraising, and project promotion. . . Books2Prisoners A community-based organization that provides donated materials to inmates throughout Illinois. References Hayes, M. (2007). From State Policy to Classroom Practice: Improving Literacy Instruction for All Students. National Association of State Boards of Education. Alexandria, VA. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (2009). Juvenile Justice 2008. Juvenile Justice Bulletin. Vacca, J. (2008). Crime Can Be Prevented If Schools Teach Juvenile Offenders to Read. Children and Youth Services Review, 30, 1055-1062 The library in the Champaign County Juvenile Detention Center is located by the classrooms. Fiction books are grouped by reading level. Non-fiction books are organized by topic. Learn more about the project by visiting http://elseyjdc.wordpress.com/