Perhaps the fundamental challenge in juvenile justice research is understanding what steps or actions the system can take that will redirect youthful offenders from a pathway of offending to a pathway of “desistance” – stopping committing offenses. There are multiple complications in researching delinquency, not the least of which is the challenge of following youth over long periods of time. The Research on Pathways to Desistance effort, sponsored by, among others, the MacArthur Foundation’s Models for Change project, attempts to assess youth across a number of variables and then follow them in terms of what the system responses have been, what has been effective, and what seems to make a difference in promoting desistance. The results so far are, not unexpectedly, confounding – that is, the vast majority of youthful offenders do appear to desist, but it’s not totally clear to what extent the system response contributed to that. And, as we are learning in the “what works” type of research, matching the right youth to the right service at the right time is likely to improve, but not guarantee, outcomes. This research is worth following.
Early Care & Education: Supporting Wisconsin Families During Children’s Early Years
Regardless of race, place, or income, every child in Wisconsin deserves a strong start in life. This early foundation plays a critical role in life-long health and wellness. But systemic racism and poverty destabilizes families and communities and creates unhealthy conditions and barriers that harm children in their early development. This process of destabilization not only prevents children from having a strong start but can persist over the course of their lives.
