TJJD News & Announcements

By Daniel Burgess, Staff Writer DENTON, Texas – A new specialty court directed at juveniles with mental illnesses who are at higher risk of committing another crime is seeking to help young offenders and their families and to protect the public from crime. Denton County Court at Law No. 1 Judge Kimberly McCary, along with staff at the Juvenile Probation Department, described the new juvenile mental health court, called Soar, at a presentation Thursday night at Emily Fowler Central Library in Denton. The National Alliance on Mental Illness Denton County hosted the presentation. The county is calling the program Soar, but McCary said it’s not an acronym — it means whatever the kids believe it means. The court itself is an intensive, phased six-month program that places a high level of accountability on the juvenile participants. It provides access to outside counseling and therapy to those who could not otherwise afford it and ensures the parents are part of the child’s rehabilit...

By Y. Denise Caldwell, CFRC Northern District ROANOKE, Texas – Family members of McFadden Ranch and Willoughby House youth have been receiving beautiful handcrafted greeting cards thanks to the efforts of former TJJD/TYC Parole Officer Nancy Davidson who currently volunteers as an Arts and Craft instructor for both Halfway Houses. She started last year with Christmas cards and assisted at the January Volunteer Appreciation Event where she designed the centerpieces and helped create the Souvenir Booklet. To date she’s had the youth make Christmas, New Year’s, Valentine’s, Easter, and Mother’s Day cards. She plans to continue her monthly classes with Father’s Day, 4th of July, Thinking of You, and more cards. “I enjoy it a lot,” said Davidson. “It helps me as much as it helps the youth.” The youth like making the cards too. They sometimes ask to make several because not only do they want to give their mother a card, but they want every woman in their life to have a unique car...

MART, Texas – Juvenile Justice Training Academy trainer Terry Williams took a break from teaching staff in the classroom to teach CPR to youth in TJJD’s Capstone Project at McLennan County Juvenile Correctional Facility. Mr. Williams has been an employee with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department for over 33 years and sees great value in the opportunity to utilize his passion for teaching others beyond the scope of training staff. “Teaching these kids skills that could potentially save lives is another great way the agency is making a positive impact toward empowering our youth to return back to the community and help others,” says Williams. The Capstone Project is an agency wide initiative implemented at each of the five secure facility locations to assist youth with skills necessary to successfully transition back to the community and achieve long-term positive outcomes. The program targets leadership, social, life and job skill development based on the youth’s specific risk factor...

AUSTIN, Texas – I must start off by welcoming new board members to the TJJD team. Governor Abbott appointed James Castro, Stephanie Moreno, Allison Palmer, and Jimmy Smith recently to complete the Texas Juvenile Justice Board. I am excited about what these individuals will bring to the leadership of TJJD and look forward to working with each of them. With the 85th Texas Legislative Session behind us, it is now time to assess the results. While no legislation passed that makes sweeping changes to the system, there were a few bills that passed worth noting. SB 1304, known as the Juvenile Records Advisory Committee bill, passed, thanks in large part to the diligent efforts of William Carter, CPO in Lubbock County along with Mark Williams, CPO in Tom Green County. There was a focus on foster children this session that resulted in several bills passing that would increase sharing of information between the Department of Family and Protective Services and juvenile justice agencies, incl...

EDINBURG, Texas – Roy Trevino dedicated most of his life helping adults around him as a computer business analyst specialist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, Texas. Now, recently retired, Mr. Trevino once again finds himself traveling to Edinburg on Tuesday nights to the Evins Regional Juvenile Center to mentor youth who have been committed to the state to help them cope with life behind the fence at the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD) facility. Mr. Trevino is also a member of First Baptist Church of Edinburg “My Brother’s Keeper.” The group has been active volunteers at Evins for the last eight years and sponsors monthly birthday parties and religious spiritual support for the boys in one of the dorms. Volunteers in the agency play a critical role in supplementing the agency’s rehabilitation program by offering a variety of life skills and other activities for the youth. Mentoring is one of them. Mentoring is a one-on-one assignment with a volunte...