Health concerns created by the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a massive push to keep youth out of restrictive, secure facilities. The pandemic’s unique constraints fostered creativity and forced leaders to seek new practices within the youth justice system. Further, a report released by Youth Justice Wisconsin found that the number of youth referrals across Wisconsin dropped by half during COVID-19. This reduction in referrals resulted in part from the need to close or severely limit placement of youth in facilities, the administrative capacity of county and state agencies, and school closures. In examining how youth justice practices may have changed during the pandemic, this study contributes to a nationwide conversation on how to divert youth from the youth justice system and shrink the current youth justice population permanently.
First Round Complete: Fueling Change in Wisconsin’s School Food System
To help eliminate disparities in schools, earlier this year we announced a grant opportunity to build pathways for local and nutritious food to reach more schools across the Midwest. We’re so excited to announce that in the first round of grants, we received 67 applicants!
![[Survey] Fines and Fees in Wisconsin’s Juvenile Justice System](https://i0.wp.com/kidsforward.org/assets/justice_web-scaled-e1716492595773.jpeg?resize=400%2C250&ssl=1)
