TJJD News & Announcements

Painting walls, laying tile and planting flowers are more than home repairs, according to Reggie Hill, mentor and volunteer instructor for “Home Repairs Made Easy,” the 2018 State Volunteer Resource Council 2018 grant awarded to Willoughby House.  “It needs a better name,” he said about his program, which teaches youth about flooring, painting and landscaping. “They’re learning construction, commercial property repair skills,” Hill said. Youth who complete the 12-week program, taught in 4-week long sessions, can earn three Certificates of Completion for Commercial Repairs 101 (in flooring, painting or landscaping or all three).   They’ve learned to install tiles, wood and carpet flooring using measuring tapes.  Their math skills have improved as well, as they have to figure how much material to get for each room and take other measurements. The painting classes consist of learning not only how much paint to buy but which paint and paint brush is best for the j...

EDINBURG, Texas – Even when not at work, for Evins Regional Juvenile Center (ERJC) JCO Eric Aleman, the call for duty is usually close to him. In July, Aleman was enjoying his day off from work at South Padre Island appreciating the nice breezy weather with family and friends when he spotted a swimmer in distress who had gone out too far from the shoreline. Without hesitation, he did what he does naturally -- help out when he is summoned. He quickly grabbed a inflated toy ring from a beachgoer and went in after the troubled swimmer. When he finally reached the swimmer, he noticed that there was more than one person on the verge of succumbing to the depth and waves of the sea. Quickly he was able to get the two swimmers to hold onto the inflated ring, while two surfers approached and assisted them. “Mr. Aleman is one of seven JCOs that were just certified last November as lifeguards,” said ERJC Recreation Specialist Jose Castellanos. Castellanos went on to say that the lifeguard t...

GIDDINGS, Texas – On March 31, 2017, Giddings State School welcomed friends, family, and volunteers to a graduation ceremony where 31 students received their GEDs and three students were awarded their high school diplomas. The Texas Juvenile Justice Department’s Lone Star High School Southeast is a fully accredited high school where students work to earn their GED or diplomas. After graduation, they have the opportunity to earn certification in various vocations or earn college credits. Giddings State School offers certifications in fields like automotive technologies, welding, and general construction and works with outside instructors to provide OSHA and CPS certifications. During their stay at TJJD, youth can earn college credits through Navarro College and apply for scholarships to help with their transition after they return home. For more information or to inquire about how you can help, please call Anita Schwartz, Community Relations Coordinator for Giddings State School a...

AUSTIN, Texas – TJJD began piloting the juvenile supervision officer certification exam in February and the last phase of the pilotbegan earlier this month. The pilot will be conducted over a six-month period and the exam will not be required for certification until September 1, 2017. To date, we have collected valuable data to be used as we move toward the final set of questions that will be used for the exam. We continue to ask departments or facilities to assist us with the pilot and have any new or existing staff take the exam. Continued feedback is always welcomed. The pilot will be for data collection only and not to give official credit for passing the exam. The link to access the third and final pilot may be found online on the Juvenile Justice Training Academy’s site. As of the end of May, we had 410 individuals attempt the test statewide, with an average score of 86.25%. The average time to take the exam has been 20 minutes. Only 1% (5) of the individuals who have attem...

AUSTIN, Texas – TJJD began piloting the juvenile supervision officer certification exam. The pilot will be conducted over a six-month period and the exam will not be required for certification until September 1, 2017. TJJD worked with the Regional Training Officers statewide, along with the Chapter 344 subgroup of the Advisory Council, to develop the first of three rounds of questions that will be used for the new automated exam. The purpose of the pilot is similar to the JPO certification exam and provides an opportunity to gain statistics on wording, timing, appropriateness of questions, etc. During the pilot, TJJD will switch out 50 questions at a time, each for two months, over the six-month period (for a total of potentially 150 questions that will be in the pool of questions). TJJD will send another email in April when the next group of 50 questions is piloted. The JSO exam will be a 50-question test with multiple choice, true/false and matching questions. The JSO exam is a ...