We Know The Risk Factors (Pathways)

1. “We’ll Take 10 of Your Boys if You Take 1 of Our Girls !”Wisconsin Juvenile Court Intake Association Training ConferenceMadison, WisconsinSeptember 14, 2005Trainer:Paula Schaeferpaulaschf@aol.com

2. Introduction*Power point notes * Resources * Goals *Evaluations

3. “ …girls are at the intersection of numerous social systems such as public health, human services, criminal & juvenile justice, housing, education, employment and treatment services. The degree to which girls’ gender & cultural needs are recognized, acknowledged and met in these systems can either interrupt or perpetuate the intergenerational cycle of crime, poverty, chemical dependency and abuse.” MN Action Plan for Female Offenders Report, Feb. 2002

4. “Justice by Gender: The Lack of Appropriate Prevention, Diversion and Treatment Alternatives for Girls in the Justice System” American Bar Assoc. & the Nat’l Bar Assoc. 2002Report www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus

5. We Know The Risk Factors (Pathways) • Childhood sexual, physical abuse, neglect • Domestic violence • Conflicted family relationships • Family substance abuse • School failure • Poverty • Early teen pregnancy “Justice by Gender: The Lack of Appropriate Prevention, Diversion and Treatment Alternatives for Girls in the Justice System”

6. What The System Needs:“A developmentally sound, culturally competent system of care for at-risk & delinquent girls from arrest to commitment must individualize services to meet girls’ educational, emotional, health & family needs.”ABA/NBA Report

7. Understand & Respect Where Girls Come From • Family • Community • Life Stressors & Experiences/Trauma • Culture of Survival • Historical Trauma Response ~ beyond Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

8. Historical Trauma “Past events shape current reality.” “Historical trauma refers to cumulative wounding across generations as well as during one’s current life span.” “Examining Two Facets of American Indian Identity: Exposure to Other Cultures and the Influence of Historical Trauma”, by Weaver & Yellow Horse Brave Heart, printed in Voices of First Nations People: Human Services Considerations, edited by Hilary Weaver 1999

9. Our girls are NOT crazy

10. What girls want staff to know about girls:”When working with girls you need patience – we are very emotional & need attention.” “We are different in every way”“We’re alike them in some type of way – were not always as bad as some people make us sound. We need them to have a little faith in us.”“We all need care, love, suport.”“We all have emotional problems & need more counseling than disiplen.”“We are not so bad.”“No matter how odd girls seem or how difficult they seem they still deserve respect.”

11. “Girls take more time than guys ~ you need to talk more deeper with us”“Stuff that happens to girls stays with them longer than it does with boys ~ stays in our heads longer…”“We are more sensitive”

12. “Everything we do in juvenile justice must be value driven.” Gordon Bazemore

13. Our values about the girls we work with determine the care and treatment they receive from us…

14. How are the girls in your system viewed?

15. Dr. Laura Burney NissenRobert Wood Johnson Foundation • The Victim Lens • The Villain Lens • The RESOURCE Lens

16. One thing I’d like staff to know about me:“I have a quick temper & run out of patience very quickly. I tend to have strange moments when I cry or sing or dance for no reason.”“I am a kid.”“I am unique & get along with people.”“I do try to control myself from acting out & I try my best to express myself in a positive way.”“I’m very out spoken but, I have feelings to, I may appear angry but I’m very sweet also. I just need for people to respect me & except me for me.” “I’m nice. I’m intelligent. Pretty good child.”“Sometimes I need a little bit of comfort.”

17. What do we know about girls?

18. Define self in relation to how others feel about them Focus is on connectedness & interdependence Relationships are central Work to avoid isolation Define self in relation to their place in the world Focus is on independence & autonomy Interested in how to get ahead & gain status Work to avoid intimacy Psychosocial DevelopmentGirls: Boys:

19. What We All Need To feel safe To feel loved To feel important To belong (or why girls do what they do …)

20. We need to help girls get their needs met in healthy, legal &safe, ways.

21. “Feeling Safe: What Girls Say”Report from the Girl Scout Research Institute 2003

22. “My mental health is most important because if I don’t think clearly then I can’t act right.” age 16

23. Considerations for Adults Regarding Safety • Don’t assume to know what girls consider important • Do not judge, threaten, lecture, issue orders, and/or try to ‘teach girls a lesson’ by withholding help • Realize that a safe location is not enough. Trusted relationships, in which girls feel valued & supported, are what makes girls feel emotionally safe. Source: “Feeling Safe: What Girls Say” by Girls Scouts Research Institute

24. “If I can’t trust you, which I don’t trust many people, then I’m not safe.” “I will not speak without being shy unless I know the person and trust that person.”

25. We can only get our needs met within the context of our relationships …

26. For girls, becoming healthy will require an assessment and potential reshaping of their relationships. Juvenile justice professionals play a key role in helping girls do this work.

27. What is any agency or facility’s most important safety & security tool? RELATIONSHIPS! Between staff & staff Between girls & staff Between girls & girls

28. Relationships are central to girls’ lives.

29. “In the absence of loving relationships, rules inspire rebellion in adolescents.Relationships are what holds girls’ lives in place.”Reviving Ophelia, Mary Pipher

30. Success through Relationships: • Make sure each girl is connected ~ within the program and within her community • Adults work to become key relationships • Focus on community responsibility vs. rules • Focus on violation of relationship vs. violation of rules & laws • Reintegration into community (program & home)

31. “Do’s & Don’t’s” in Relationship Building with Girls • Don't send girls to strangers … • Let girls know you care about them (even when they mess up) • “Catch them doing good” and praise them for their efforts • Teach them how to make good decisions & then let them make them

32. Teach girls ways to stay connected with people who are important to them without sacrificing themselves to their relationships.

33. Societal Influences

34. “I don’t like no females!I only hang out with the guys!!

35. Messages from the Dominant Culture

36. “Addressing racism and sexism in an open and forthright manner is essentialto building psychological health in African American children.”~ Janie Victoria Ward“Raising Resisters: The role of Truth Telling in the Psychological Development of African American Girls”

37. Restore girls to their relationships, their communities and to themselves Individual Change Relational Change Community Change We need to acknowledge & deal with girls’ strengths, problem behaviors and life stressors. We must intentionally intervene with girls as offenders and victims.

38. The majority of girls who come into the juvenile justice system are crime victims themselves …

39. “Being abused is consistently identified as the first step along a girl’s pathway into the juvenile justice system.”Girls Inc. August 2002

40. Helping Girls Heal • Create communities of healing • Educate girls on victimization issues • Give girls an opportunity to process what happened to them & learn new ways to cope • Mandatory staff training on sexual/physical abuse & PTSD • Access “expert” community resources • Understand impact of culture, race, ethnicity & all of the “isms” on trauma recovery • Assess policies and procedures

41. “Traditional methods of preserving order & asserting authority in [detention] centers (especially ‘tough’ physically confrontational approaches & the use of isolation & restraints) may backfire with female detainees who suffer from PTSD.”“Trauma Among Girls in the Juvenile Justice System”National Child Traumatic Stress Network 2004

42. We Talk About “Empowering Girls” Power & Control • Misuse of Power • Overuse of Power • Under use of power

43. How is Power used in your agencies & facilities?

44. We can’t teach girls how to regain their sense of personal power by misusing power ourselves … To empower girls requires that we SHARE POWER with Girls!

45. Promising Approaches for Girls • Staff are well trained & have a voice • Restorative Treatment Communities • Health & Wellness as a treatment focus • Address trauma issues & provide support • Culturally relevant interventions & services • Resources: Books, curricula, interventions & support services designed for girls • Girls have a voice in the services they receive

46. What Group Topics Girls Would Like:“Drugs, anger, guys, sex.”“What should we do when you have boyfriends or family members that use drugs.” “Health class, art.” “Anger management, abuse issues, drugs & alcohol.”“How to protect myself from violence.”“Emotions, family, funny past times… Things that aren’t so serious all the time.”“Domestic violence, sex, placement”“Sexual abuse, anger management”“Gangs, Domestic Violence & all types of abuse”

47. “Drugs: affects, harms, etc.” “Sex, drugs, and emotions.” “Drugs, pregnancy.” “Family violence.” “Family issues * more substance abuse groups with graphic movies, stories, pictures * sexual abuse * teen pregnancy * STD’s * HIV * AIDS”“Life in the real world”“Sex, drugs, relationships”“Family issues, Run away behaviors, Drug abuse, Life & Future”“Anything interesting” “Rape, domestic violence, death of a friend or family member, anger.”“Law, women’s rights, sex.” “Social skills.”

48. Wisconsin Program for Girls Brooke Whitley brookew@co.polk.wi.us Polk County G.I.R.L.S Group

49. Funding Sources • Lion’s Clubs • Snowmobile Clubs • Homemakers Groups • Women’s Clubs • Small Businesses • Law Firms • Individuals • Supply Donations • Grants

50. Polk County G.I.R.L.S. Group Great Independent Rockin’ Loyal Sisters