Literacy and System-Involved Youth: Strategies for improving outcomes

1. Literacy and System-Involved Youth:Strategies for improving outcomes June 23rd, 2008 Evan Elkin - Director of the Adolescent Reentry Initiative & Adolescent Portable Therapy, Vera Institute of Justice

2. Goals of Presentation • Scope of the problem: Overview of relevant national and local research findings on literacy and incarcerated youth • Overview of promising practices and blueprint recommendations in the literacy education field for incarcerated youth • Snapshot of recent literacy programming developments here in New York City • Describe a new literacy initiative and pilot program developed by the Vera Institute of Justice in partnership with NYC Council, DOC and the Queens Public Library • Workshop exercise: generating new recommendations for the field

3. Criminal Justice System-involved Youth: Key Research Findings • Youth in correctional facilities on average read at the 4th grade level (Brunner 1993) • 80% of incarcerated youth read at one or more grade levels below their same age peers (Malmgren & Leone, 2000) • More than 50% of youth on Rikers Island read below the 6th grade level (Internal statistics, Island Academy) • Matching national figures, roughly 35% of Rikers youth carry a special education classfication (Internal statistics, Island Academy)

4. Key Research Findings Cont’d • Less than 1/3 of youth returning home from NYC jails enroll in school (Fruedendberg, 2000) • Youth with significant academic delays are twice as likely to recidivate or violate parole (Archwamety & Katsiyannis, 2000) • High school dropouts are 3.5 times more likely than graduates to be arrested (US DOE, 1994) • Incarcerated youth were 37% less likely to return to prison if they learned to read at re-entry (Criminal Justice Policy Council, 1998)

5. The Problem • Low Literacy is correlated with: • Disengagement from formal education • Unemployment and lower wages • Arrest, incarceration & recidivism • Programming options (GED prep, vocational training etc) for low readers (Below 6th grade) are profoundly limited • Lack of innovative literacy teaching strategies tailored to the needs system-involved youth and young adults

6. Vera’s Involvement with Literacy: Developing a set of program recommendations • ARI program faced the crisis of excluding half of eligible youth because of literacy levels and lack of community programs • Vera conducted a detailed review of the literature and existing promising programs • Examined evidence-supported and promising practices through a re-entry lens • Developed a set of a recommendations • Assembled NYC stakeholders to reach consensus on a blueprint • Vera developed and launched a literacy intervention pilot

7. Recent Developments in NYC • Deputy Mayor Gibbs’ office and CEO launched a literacy intiative this year • Based on Vera blueprint • Drawing on NYC strengths: library systems, literacy providers contracted through DYCD • Seeks to stimulate innovation and curriculum development • Multi-site implementation of the CEPS model in NYC • Promising early results • Will play a coordinating/guiding role with the CEO initiative • Vera’s Adolescent Reentry Initiative (ARI) launched a pilot of a literacy model for youth returning from adult jail • Plans to continue to refine and test curriculum and programming approach • Our goal is to take the program to scale and expand to other populations

8. Promising Programs • NYC: Community Education Pathways to Success (CEPS) model • Integrates literacy learning with wraparound youth services in a community based setting • Developed by the Youth Development Institute (ydiinstitute.org) • Uses Ramp Up curriculum • Oakland CA: Project Choice • Integrates literacy learning with multi-target prison reentry services (pre and post-release phases • 34% improvements in recidivism • Designed and tested their own curriculum • Yo! Baltimore • “Community center” approach with multiple services including job readiness and placement, a recording studio and a health club • Serves criminal justice, child welfare involved youth as well as school disconnected youth • Modest improvements in recidivism and strong employment outcomes • Literacy element consists of online and tutoring for GED prep

9. Promising Curricula • RAMP Up • Used by CEPS programs • Strong outcomes for youth reading at 6th grade and above • Integrates vocational material • Read 180 • Used by Job Corps • Software driven and bilingual • Good track record with adults • Not tested with a system involved youth population • REWARDS • Success with 2.5 to 4.0 readers • But its use has been with 4th and 5th graders, not older adolescents, young adults or system-involved populations

10. Integrating Re-entry Needs of the System-Involved Youth: Lessons from ARI • History of academic failure leads to very low frustration tolerance and sense of hopelessness about entering an educational program • The “re-entry window” - where motivation to make changes is high – can close very quickly (nationally - 25% of youth drop out of programs at 30 days post reentry) • A traditional classroom setting can be daunting for youth who have been disengaged from school • Rigid rules and excessive structure may be difficult from some youth post-incarceration • Program attendance = lost wages: The need to earn money can make regular attendance in a program challenging for some youth • Class/semester schedules don’t line up with release dates

11. Youth Re-entry Needs Cont’d: • Rates of substance use, mental health difficulties and family problems among detained and incarcerated youth are very high • Stigma of criminal justice history makes return to traditional education settings daunting (and often impossible without advocacy) • Many community programs have little experience and high anxiety about working with incarcerated youth • Ages 16-18 can cover a broad development spectrum • Competing with the streets/gangs

12. Primary Blueprint Recommendations: Program Structure • Comprehensive, holistic and strength-based assessment • Begin engagement and services pre-release • Embed programming in a youth-focused, multi-target support environment • Resistance is the norm: build in assertive and flexible recruitment and retention strategies and expect disruption and disengagement • Leverage supportive power of the classroom group itself • Peer led and directed process for engagement and retention • Stipends • Individualized attention (eg., CEPS “primary person approach”) • Pragmatic, fun, flexible atmosphere • Bridge to next steps

13. Primary Blueprint Recommendations: Curriculum • Anticipatory strategies: students know what they will learn before they learn it • Classroom strategies accommodate multiple learning levels and paces • Student centered: encourage multiple learning strategies to achieve learning goals • Culturally relevant and student-driven curriculum content • Authentic/pragmatic texts • Reconcile literacy with living: Don’t sidestep issues of criminal justice system involvement, race and priviledge etc. as it pertains to literacy • Arts and media integration - recognize and build on students literacy with other forms of “text”: print, visual, oral, musical, electronic

14. Vera’s Literacy Pilot: Goals • Develop a new literacy teaching curriculum responsive to the “blueprint” • Embed the literacy learning experience in the re-entry wraparound services provided by ARI • Implement the program in an accessible community context • Partner with an organization (QBL) with a strong teaching infrastructure and shared mission to address adult and young adult literacy • Evaluate implementation process and refine model and curriculum

15. Key Components of Vera Literacy Model • Integrating literacy programming with multi-target re-entry intervention: SA, MH, Family, life skills, housing, work readiness • Ongoing relationship with a case manager • Integration of vocational, career and higher education goals with literacy programming and with the curriculum itself • Blending of “authentic texts” with traditional literature • Arts and media integration - recognize and build on students literacy with other forms: print, visual, oral, musical, electronic • Structured rolling admission • Stipends • Job development services and linkages with further training and education post literacy program

16. Evaluation, Outcomes, Next steps • Tracking youth progress • Intermittent formal testing • Testing and refining the curriculum • Prioritizing youth feedback on what’s working • Planned series of curriculum revisions • Development of a teacher training manual for the curriculum • Process and implementation evaluation • Goal for a more comprehensive evaluation post pilot • Begin teaching pre-release? • Bring program to scale and target other youth populations

17. Breakout Group Exercise