ABSTRACT
Creating a team committed to improving educational outcomes repeatedly emerges as one of the most effective ways to create and sustain change. Instead, juvenile justice systems are often left to tackle challenges such as arranging for school enrollment or connecting youth with appropriate mental health services on a case-by-case basis. As a result, reducing recidivism and other positive youth outcomes are often heavily dependent on local receptivity to systems collaboration, the existence of cross systems protocols, and the willingness of specific public agency staff to return phone calls or attend meetings. The Education Action Team framework described targets all of the collaborative needs simultaneously not only for juvenile justice youth but for child welfare youth as well. California created the Child Welfare Council that oversees practices within all systems serving child welfare youth. Action Team members coming together to pinpoint specific gaps in services that are barriers in improving educational outcomes for court-involved youth.
