RJIP PROGRESS REPORT

DECEMBER 2017

Date of Next Task Force Meeting: January 17, 2018

Next Key Milestone: School Justice Partnership Workshop

February 27-28, 2018

1. What is the specific problem/racial disparity your task force has identified?
Describe briefly below Do you have data to support the identification of the
problem? Please site statistics/data accumulated/or other information relied
upon which explains the problem identified. This question requires a very
specific answer.

Over the past few decades, schools have become increasingly reliant on
harsh discipline and zero tolerance policies in the belief that such
policies would increase school safety. These harsh discipline practices
are disproportionately applied to our most vulnerable and
marginalized youth, with particular application to students of color,
exponentially decreasing their access to resources needed to become
thriving adults who contribute to their community. Studies have shown
that even a single suspension doubles a student’s likelihood of dropping
out or school and triples the chance that they will come in contact with
the juvenile justice system. The Advancement Project found that
punitive discipline policies led to a tripling of the national prison
population from 1987 to 2007. This finding has particular application
in Louisiana due to the state having the highest per capita incarceration
rate in the world. This is in part due to excessive punitive school
discipline which is the first step leading into the pipeline to prison. It is
critical that we utilize constructive measures that hold youth
accountable for their behavior and do not place them on the path to
juvenile justice involvement.

Orleans Parish Juvenile Court has seen a drastic increase in the number
of school-based offenses referred to juvenile court. School based
offenses are defined as offenses that occur during school hours and on
the school premise. Our data shows that between 2014-15 and 2015-
16, school based offenses referred to the juvenile court increased from
six percent (6%) to fourteen percent (14%). The problem that the task
force seeks to address is the disproportionate treatment of students
referred to the court from low income and African American schools
and communities.

2. What is the proposed racial justice policy reform that your task force developed
to address this disparity?
 The Orleans Parish Juvenile Court task force reviewed the school based
offense data with relevant parties including law enforcement, school
leaders and the courts to evaluate how best to address the increase in
the number of school based offenses referred to the court. The goal of
the task force is to change the mindset of school officials and school
resource officers. We have conducted implicit bias training for the task
force and we intend to expand this training to all police officers, not just
those who work within the school system. We hope to educate the
community on better methods of dealing with anti-social behavior that
do not result in involvement in the juvenile justice system.

3. How do you plan to pilot your reform Project? Please list step-by-step
instructions. What is the name of your pilot program? Please include specific
timelines and dates. Please include partnerships or networking.

Our school based intervention program is named Paving Alternative

Strategies for Success (PASS). The school-based intervention program
(PASS) is designed for youth that commit minor school violations that
result in the individual being arrested, suspended, and/or expelled
from school. School based arrests, suspensions and expulsions further
fuel the school to prison pipeline and currently account for over 14% of
the youth arrested in Orleans Parish between August 2015 and May
2016.

The PASS program began on October 1, 2017 and will last throughout
the school year. The PASS program will utilize evidence based
Restorative Justice Practice to address issues of anti-social behavior
that currently result in referrals to juvenile court. Program
participants will meet with the PASS counselor/therapist during the
course of the program to insure attendance and address any underlying
issues that may be contributing to the anti-social behavior. Program
success will be determined by three categories: recidivism (new or
repeat offences), school and program attendance, and positive changes
in behavior while at school.

The task force has developed a partnership between the Orleans Parish
Juvenile Court, the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) and the
Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) to commit to address minor school
based offences on school grounds rather than referring them to juvenile
court. The program has also enlisted the assistance of community
/school advocates to address minor offenses that occur at school
without the youth being introduced to the criminal justice system and
thus missing valuable academic time.
4. How do you plan to track and measure the effectiveness of your proposed racial
justice policy reform? Who will create the reports? Who is managing the data?

Program data will be collected and tracked by a Master of Social Work

(MSW) and the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court Data Analyst to assess
program progress and success. The Data Analyst will manage and
report on collected information. Additionally, a Licensed Professional
Counselor (LPC) or MSW will facilitate pre and post self-assessment and
focus groups to gauge program effectiveness and outcomes.

Data collected will include:

 Total number of youth that committed school based

offenses at target schools that result in NOPD being called
and youth being brought to the Youth Studies Center (YSC).
 Number of encounters by youth and School Resource
Officers at target OPSB schools.
 Number of youth who committed school based offenses,
referred to the PASS program for services at target OPSB
schools
 Pre and Post therapeutic focus groups or individual
evaluation responses of youth that participated in the
PASS program
 Recidivism of youth participants in target schools
 Total number of youth suspended and expelled at OPSB
target schools
 Participation in follow up care by program youth with
community agencies/partners.

5. Please identify (by name and job title) the specific people in your criminal
justice system/jurisdiction or other national partners that the task force will
need to collaborate with in the coming year to successfully implement the
proposed reform? How do you plan to obtain by in from local stakeholders?

Chief Michael Harrison, New Orleans Police Superintendent has signed

on in full support of the PASS program. The police Chief has agreed to
educate and train New Orleans Police Officers on best practices when
dealing with youth. Dr. Stephen Philippi, Program Chair of Behavioral
and Community Health Services at Louisiana State University Health
Sciences Center has created and will conduct School Resource Officer
training. Dr. Henderson Lewis, OPSB Superintendent, has agreed to
assist in the creation and initiate school policy reform that re-directs
toward positive and productive solutions to minor school-based
offenses rather than to the juvenile justice system. Judge Steven Teske,
Clayton County Juvenile Court Judge and founder of the School-Justice
 Partnership Model has made two visits to New Orleans to introduce the
School-Justice Partnership Model and to educate the task force and
stakeholders on the process of creating a School-Justice Partnership in
New Orleans. Judge Teske will return to New Orleans in February to
conduct a two-day workshop with relevant partners to construct a
specific and defined agreement between the school system, law
enforcement and the court. Justice Bernette Johnson, Chief Justice of the
Louisiana Supreme Court has committed the court’s support to inform
the community and serve as an active participant in meeting and task
force activities. Justice Johnson allowed the implicit bias training at the
Supreme Court to evidence her support and commitment to the
program.

6. What steps will the task force take to inform and educate the community and
your criminal justice system about your proposed racial justice reform and
garner support for the reform? What steps have already been taken, please
outline and describe below. (i.e. recent conference in Nov. 2017)

We have already begun the process of informing the community

through a program entitled “Conversations with Juvenile Court”. The
speaker series goes out to community groups and neighborhood
associations to educate the community on court activity, programs and
events. In addition we have invited relevant and vocal community
members and groups to participate in task force events. Over 45 task
force members and community partners participated in a Juvenile
Deflection and Implicit Bias Training conducted by The American Bar
Association Criminal Justice Section’s Racial Justice Improvement
Project and the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court. We will be making
presentations to the Orleans Parish School Board and will participate in
the yearly “All Schools” training.

7. How will you define “success” for your proposed racial justice reform? When is
your proposed pilot start and completion date?

The school based intervention program (PASS) is focused on addressing

community safety, competency development and offender
accountability in a manner that decreases the number of youth referred
to the juvenile justice system. Success will be accomplished by seeing a
reduction in the number of school-based arrests for minor offenses and
the gradual elimination of racial disparity among our most vulnerable
youth. The program began on October 1, 2017 and will operate through
the school year or until May 30, 2018.

8. What obstacles can you anticipate the might prevent or delay the successful
implementation of your proposed racial justice reform?
 The police department is an integral part of the program. Due to the
shortage of police officers, often untrained officer are sent into schools
to deal with minor offenses that resort to arrest. An obstacle may be
the lack of training for all police officer in school based anti-social
behavior and appropriate responses. The policy must be engrained in
daily operations of the department. The Chief of Police must be
provided with sufficient resources to advise and educate the entire
force on how to effectively handle school based offenses.

9. What steps can you take in the next year to institutionalize your task force
beyond the grant period and ensure that your work continues? Can you
collaborate with existing projects in your jurisdiction?

We have a well-developed relationship with local law enforcement and

the school system. Both have made an ongoing commitment to
reducing the school to prison pipeline. We will continue to regularly
review the data and meet to discuss how the project can be improved.

The court and the task force is already collaborating the New Orleans
City Counsel Criminal Justice Committee on a city ordinance recently
passed to reduce the overall juvenile arrest rate. The Policing
Alternatives for Youth (PAY) ordinance allow officers more choices in
how to handle encounters with youth. This ordinance provides the
opportunity for officers to issue warning notices to youth who commit
minor offenses.

10. Please describe and outline your Year 1 expenses for your first installment
check below. Please also provide a proposed budget for how you plan to spend
the next installment funds. Do you need any additional funds outside of our
contract? Do you need any specific technical assistance in the upcoming year?
Please outline below.

RACIAL JUSTICE IMPROVEMENT TASK FORCE

SUMMARY OF EXPENSES TO DATE

TOTAL RECEIVED $ 11,500.00

Check # Date Description Amount

031214 9/7/2017 CASH 59.25
031295 9/19/2017 DEJJES 550.00
031091 8/24/2017 DEJJES 537.50
031465 10/11/2017 MAINOFF 63.36
Visa 11/1/2017 Amazon 44.34
Visa 11/3/2017 Premium Parking 619.50
1550 11/3/2017 Bernards Pralines 99.00
Visa 11/3/2017 4lmprint 468.14
Visa 11/3/2017 Delta Airlines (Teske) 304.40
Visa 11/3/2017 Hotel Monteleone 534.14
Visa 11/3/2017 Just Ask Rental 250.57
1546 11/7/2017 Kevin Brown 150.00
Visa 11/6/2017 Office Depot 303.48
Elizabeth Anderson Catering 3,355.00
TOTAL 7,338.68

BALANCE $ 4,161.32

We are planning to utilize the remaining funds, including the next

installment check, for expenses associated with the two day workshop
that will be conducted in New Orleans on February 27th and 28th, 2018.
The fund will also be used to cover costs associated with site visits to
successful School-Justice Partnerships programs and educational
opportunities around disproportionate minority contact and school-
based intervention initiatives.