In a few weeks, a pilot program that has taken years of research, planning and preparation will launch, with resources in place to decrease the number of young people who come in contact with the Shelby County juvenile justice system.

Previously called the Shelby County Youth Assessment Center, the renamed Shelby County Youth Advocacy Center will offer help for children 12-17 without any involvement from law enforcement.

The center will be a place where children who have been acting out at school, in the home or community can receive care for mental health issues and/or experienced trauma, said Dr. Altha Stewart.

Shelby County has contributed $500,000 for the pilot program. The University of Tennessee Health Science Center has a contract to oversee it for one year, with an option to renew each year for three additional years. It will be run through UT’s Center for Health in Justice Involved Youth, which is headed by Stewart.

Last week, Stewart took county officials, including county Mayor Lee Harris and County Commission member Mark Billingsley on a tour of the new facility on the second floor at 66 Pauline St. The space has been donated and built out for the center by UTHSC at no cost to the county.

The light-filled space has been transformed into one that is contemporary and welcoming, with a series of private spaces for meetings with at-risk children and their families.

“It’s been several years in the making. I think we’ve reached an important milestone. I saw this place when it was far different than it is today, when it was unimproved and really, really rough around the edges,” Harris said. “But the finished product is an encouraging sign that this will become a place to help kids and put them on the path to rehabilitation.”

Shelby County has gone through a series of juvenile justice reforms over the last decade, Stewart said.

An investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice found that African-American children were being discriminated against by the Shelby County Juvenile Court and that their constitutional rights were being violated. In 2012, the county, Juvenile court and the DOJ entered into a memorandum of agreement that detailed court reforms and oversight from the justice department.

The DOJ ended its oversight of Juvenile Court last year, although in December a report released by a DOJ monitor stated that the oversight should not have ended.

The culmination of those years of reforms is a commitment by the county mayor, County Commission and university to at-risk young people, Stewart said.

“I think it was wise – given where we came from with juvenile justice reform in Memphis and Shelby County – I think it was wise to create a program of service and support and disconnect from Juvenile Court,” she said.

The program will be for children who have had or are at risk of having contact with the criminal justice system. Youth who are accused of committing serious crimes are not eligible.

And because the county has established partners and resources in Frayser, it was chosen as the focus community for the pilot, said Dorcas Young Griffin, county director of community services.

Griffin has guided the project from its beginning.

“Now, as we expand we’ll look at some other areas that may not be as well resourced, but we looked at Frayser to start,” Griffin said.

The network in Frayser includes community groups, schools and law enforcement.

“Because many of our law enforcement officers actually know the children in the communities they serve, if they think that a child could be served and want to recommend that they come, we’re open to that,” Stewart said.

But police officers won’t be transporting young people to the center.

“There is a minority, a fringe almost, opinion that somehow law enforcement will increase and expand the number of arrests because they have more places to take kids,” Harris said. “None of that’s going to happen.”

“This is absolutely in no way, shape or form a way to lock up more children that are falling through the cracks,” Billingsley said. “This is an opportunity to proactively address the needs of our children and youth in Shelby County.”

There are kids in the county who do horrific things, said Billingsley, who was part of a group that first looked at similar programs four years ago.

“But we also have kids that are hurting,” he said.

The center will hold a “soft opening” on Sept. 9, said Kena Vassar, center director.

“This is absolutely in no way, shape or form a way to lock up more children that are falling through the cracks. This is an opportunity to proactively address the needs of our children and youth in Shelby County.”
Mark Billingsley, Shelby County commissioner

At this point, they are still negotiating with mental health care providers who specialize in trauma to locate there, Stewart said.

Families who use the center will first meet with an intake person who will gather general information. They will then be seen by a specialist, who will conduct a screening to determine the level and type of need, and how the needs might best be met, she said.

Families can come through referrals or families in and outside of Frayser can visit the center without one. And the children must be released to a parent or guardian or responsible adult. 

Although the "juvenile assessment center" has been in the works for a while, it was the commonly used JAC acronym which suggested folks were getting "jacked up" that needed to be changed.

First, Stewart said, she is on a personal campaign to end the use of the word 'juvenile' instead of 'child.'

The word 'juvenile' is fine for institutions or systems, but it also conjures an image of someone who is unworthy, Stewart said.

And the word 'assessment' sounds like something broken.

"I’m a psychiatrist. Words matter and how we named this, moving away from 'juvenile' to 'youth,' moving away from 'assessment,' which connotes something's wrong with you that we’re going to decide and fix," Stewart said. "All of those are stigmatizing terms. These kids have enough working against them. They don’t need to have to go to a place where you’re the image of a heathen criminal."

And even though the center is still in its pilot stage, she has high hopes for the work they will soon take on.

“I’m a very positive person and I’m optimistic beyond belief that this is the right thing to do and that we’re going to do it well enough that people will begin to trust again that their child, even if they encounter the juvenile justice system, is not going to get lost in that system,” Stewart said.