Program Purpose Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) is a state agency that is designed to supervise and provide treatment services to youth who are involved in the juvenile justice system in Maryland. DJS gets involved in the process in the beginning of a youth’s encounter with the juvenile system which may be a result of a police arrest or complaint from a citizen. The Department will stay involved until matters are resolved. (Department of Juvenile Services, n.d.) The mission of the agency states “By law, DJS is a child-serving agency responsible for assessing the individual needs of referred youth and providing intake, detention, probation, commitment, and after-care services. DJS collaborates with youth, families, schools, community partners, …show more content…
• Promote continuums of care for referred and delinquent youth. • Build, maintain and empower a diverse, competent, and professional workforce. • Enhance the quality, availability and use of technology. (Department of Juvenile Services, n.d.) The text, Designing and Managing Programs, defines programs as “a prearranged set of activities designed to achieve a stated set of goals and objectives. To meet objectives, be able to monitor and evaluate the program, the agency has to have a plan in place in advance in order establish what those goals will be. It should also have a clear understanding of how it plans to accomplish those goals. (Kettner, Moroney, & Martin, 2013, p. 9). Background Juvenile justice was started in Maryland hundreds of years ago when children were being jailed with adults for things like homelessness. In 1830 a law passed that determined that youth should be separated from adults. “An Act to Establish a House of Refuge for Juvenile Delinquents” was also passed by legislature which allowed the states to provide delinquent youth with homes, education, and job training. (Department of Juvenile Service,