The Juvenile Justice Evaluation Center Project

• NCJ Number: 188572
• Author(s): Francesca G. Lanier; Stan Orchowsky; Taj C. Carson
• Date Published: June 2001
• Length: 2 pages
• Agencies: OJJDP
• Publication Type: Program/Project Description

Annotation

This paper describes the Federal Juvenile Justice Evaluation Center Project, whose goal is to provide resources and practical technical assistance that will strengthen the ability of local and State policymakers, program administrators and staff, and evaluators to implement and use evaluation studies and their findings.

Abstract

The first phase of the project focused on the assessment of the States' (and territories') existing evaluation practices and technical assistance needs. Beginning in early 1999, the Justice Research and Statistics Association surveyed three groups of State stakeholders: juvenile justice specialists, Statistical Analysis Center directors, and State Advisory Group chairs. The aim of the survey was to determine States' evaluation needs. The Juvenile Justice Evaluation Center (JJEC) has a number of ongoing activities designed to address the needs identified in the assessment: regional training; onsite technical assistance; the Statistical Analysis Center Evaluation Partnership Program; an evaluation manual; and evaluation briefing papers and guides. JJEC Online provides evaluation resources and information specific to juvenile justice programs and initiatives. The Justice Research and Statistics Association is working on several projects that involve addressing disproportionate minority confinement (DMC), including a guide to related evaluation issues and technical assistance on evaluating DMC initiatives. Overall, JJEC helps States measure the effectiveness of juvenile justice programs and provides constructive feedback that helps local programs improve their performance.