Roughly 15,000 juveniles a year rely on adjudicated youth programs to attain their high school education. Approximately 30 school districts in the state run these programs, while following court orders, to provide education and vocational training for these students.

“The adjudicated youth population is very diverse not only in ethnicity, but background,” said Bill Haines, principal of Wolverine Alternative Ed in Vassar, and co-chair of the Michigan Education Association for Adjudicated Youth.

MEAAY, formed in 1997, is a non-profit organization that promotes educational programming for adjudicated students.

These students possess qualities that many districts struggle to serve. Most adjudicated youth are behind in grade level, have special education needs, have been physically and/or emotionally abused, suffered alcohol and/or substance abuse, and are often not successful in formal classroom settings. Many of the students also have their own children to care for, and may have gang affiliations.

With such a variety of backgrounds to serve, adjudicated youth programs and MEAAY work to ensure that the students’ school district is not only providing an education that will lead that student to success, but one that also conforms to the court order for that student.

The students’ gender, treatment plan, and length of stay in a program are all criteria that must be considered in working with students to provide an individualized and successful education. However, that can mean overcoming big obstacles unique to these programs.

When the students are enrolled in an adjudicated youth program, they often must be separated by gender and treatment groups.

“We have to make accommodations so students don’t interact with another group of students. For instance, students with different security levels can not interact,” Haines said.

The students’ length in a program unfortunately creates a long-term barrier. Since a students’ program stay can range from just a few days to a year, administrators often find that its students are not aligned with No Child Left Behind criteria. They have often missed state testing and have fallen behind in their credits.

“Nearly all of the organization’s students are behind in grade level,” Haines said. “When students attend school every day, it is rewarding to see the significant grade gains that they make.”

Every year, a performance report must be submitted to the state showing the grade gains that students make using an approved test. The results are surprisingly positive, with many students showing grade gains in reading and math of three to four grade levels.

Another challenge for adjudicated youth programs are the scheduled student count days. Though these dates are set in place to ensure a school’s appropriate funding, the adjudicated youth programs often receive less funding than needed to provide required services. Adjudicated youth often enter the programs after the September count date and there are usually higher counts at the end of the year, when funding is less.

“We usually have less kids in the fall, and more at the end of the year when students are expelled or removed from their schools by the courts, so there’s no money to add staff,” Haines said.

Amid all the challenges, professionals serving these youth must be determined to create a successful pathway for the students they serve. One way a program ensures this is by knowing its students and approaching them in a way that benefits them the most.

“Our goal for students is different than most schools,” Haines said. “Because we get them for only a part of the year, we have a lot of emphasis on transition. Transition from the school they came from, and the transition to get them back into school. Transition back into the community can often be a significant challenge, in part because of their court contact. Schools are often very tentative with enrolling our students. Our staff does a great job of interacting with the future school placement to ensure that the student’s academic career continues.”

For adjudicated youth, it is up to the local school district to provide an education, not a residential facility. If the school district feels they cannot properly address the needs of these students, they may create partnerships with the Intermediate School District or a charter school to provide these services.

Since most adjudicated youth have special education needs, many ISD’s provide the educational services. However, this is the local district’s decision.

Like traditional high school programs, those serving adjudicated youth must meet the standards of the Michigan Merit Curriculum. In addition, adjudicated youth programs put a focus on completion of the GED and other completion certificates, including the ACT Work Keys vocational readiness certificate.

“We want to offer options for the students. A lot of them aren’t going to go on and get four-year degrees, but they need to be employable. So we put a lot of focus on vocational opportunities,” Haines said. “Many of our students can successfully go on to community college programs, too.

Here at Wolverine Alternative Ed, (within) Vassar Public Schools during the 2008-09 school year, we had 10 students receive their High School Diploma and 31 students receive their GED certificate. Most of these students left the program enrolled in a community college program,” Haines said.  “I am sure that other schools (for adjudicated youth) experience similar success.  Our students have been ‘left behind’ and it is our ultimate goal to have them obtain an education and life skills, so that they may experience success into the future.”

Though professionals like Bill Haines must overcome unique barriers to serve his students, he and his staff are relentless in creating success. Being a supporter for these students, ensuring that they receive the education they are entitled to, and showing that they can be successful in life, is all in a day’s work for those who serve adjudicated youth.