Community Conversation on Youth Issues
The East Hartford Department of Youth Services and the Hartford Judicial District’s Local Interagency Service Team (LIST) will host an important community conversation on youth engagement and empowerment. This event, Safeguarding our Youths’ Future, is a follow-up to a public hearing on youth opportunity that was held in September of 2015. The organizers will present policy recommendations and hear feedback and ideas from the community. Registration is requested; there will be free dinner and door prizes. For more info and to register, contact Cephus Nolen at (860) 291-7179, or visit: http://bit.ly/EastHartfordLISTForum2016
“This event is a great experience for parents and young people in our community to be part of shaping statewide policy on youth opportunities,” said Mayor Marcia A. Leclerc. “Giving today’s youth access to the resources they need to develop into engaged and empowered citizens is of vital importance, as is providing safe and constructive outlets for youthful creativity and passion.”
“National and statewide research on youth is increasingly telling us that the more we do to divert young people from the juvenile justice system, the better off they will be as adults,” said East Hartford Youth Services Director Cephus Nolen. “We as a community have come together with all stakeholders to assess the needs of youth in East Hartford. This collaboration between the Town, the Juvenile Court, and parents and kids is helping shape how we will help youth in the future.
“From a Law Enforcement perspective, we are one hundred percent behind this effort,” said Chief of Police Scott Sansom. “Keeping kids from entering the juvenile system, and giving them opportunities to learn healthy habits without intervention from the courts makes them less likely to offend as adults. We are proud to be part of this effort, building a culture of trust and openness between law enforcement and kids, parents and the community at large.”
This event is an opportunity for parents and youth in the community to come together with Youth Services staff and Hartford Judicial District policy makers to discuss the needs and concerns of East Hartford Youth. The goal of the program is to encourage youth community engagement and prevent young people from becoming involved with the criminal justice system, as well as providing alternatives to the judicial process that can educate and empower youth and prevent re-offending.
The Hartford LIST is collaboration between the Bloomfield, East Hartford, Glastonbury, Hartford, West Hartford and Windsor Youth Service Bureaus, the Connecticut Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division and the Connecticut Department of Children & Families that coordinates local stakeholders in raising awareness about the needs of children and youth involved in the juvenile justice system, as well as planning, evaluating, and supporting juvenile justice services in each juvenile court catchment area.
The recommendations collected will be forwarded to the statewide youth Local Interagency Service Teams (LIST) to help craft statewide policy addressing youth issues. For more info and to register, contact Cephus Nolen at (860) 291-7179, or visit: http://bit.ly/EastHartfordLISTForum2016