County awarded federal juvenile program funds

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St. Croix County Health and Human Services has received a $50,000 federal grant the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance (OJA) announced last Friday.

The grant is part of $225,000 awarded to six counties for innovative juvenile justice programs that have a proven track record of success.

In St. Croix County the funds were awarded for a Juvenile Treatment Court, which has developed a unique method to address each youth. The county has also implemented an intensive evidence-based therapy process that has demonstrated to be clinically and cost effective for youth with complex emotional, social and academic needs.

“These funds help local communities provide the tools troubled kids need to get them on a path to a productive future,” said OJA Executive Director John Murray. “By keeping parents and family involved and delivering resources that work, we can keep Wisconsin kids out of secure detention.”

The county project addresses to priorities outlined in Wisconsin’s juvenile justice improvement plan: reducing truancy and the use of secure detention and increasing the use of risk/need assessments for juveniles, said Murray.

The St. Croix County Treatment Court is well positioned to serve as a model court for other areas in Wisconsin. Federal juvenile justice funds are one of the few resources of funding for innovative local programs aimed and reducing and preventing juvenile delinquency, he said.

Pierce County’s Department of Human Services received $26,028 of the grant for risk assessment to identify the needs of youth and a Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee to keep the community involved in juvenile issues.

Tags: saint croix county, crime and courts, communities, money