Justice-Involved Youth

Including a peer-support workbook with exercises, this book demonstrates the therapeutic value of art practice, both inside and outside institutions, as a more humane approach for children and adolescents affected by mass incarceration. The author discusses how a trauma-informed approach can heal marginalized and ignored citizens and refutes the notion that severe punishment for repeat offenders is essential or effective. Author Carol Cross has decades of experience incorporating therapeutic expressive arts in her professional practice, with a focus on peer-led programs. She advocates a trauma-informed approach using a peer-driven creative process, showing how such programs can intervene in the cycle of violence and contribute to a practice of community preventive care for youth deemed to be at risk. The workbook is built on the research and resources Cross has used within care plans with clinical teams and youth forensics. The user is shown how to build on these teachings and implement or modify the content to suit individual needs. Contributions from persons involved in the judicial system and such intervention programs vet the topics in the workbook as resonating with group participants. This user-friendly book will benefit anyone working with justice-involved children and adolescents, including those working in and around the criminal legal system as well as in programs outside of carceral institutions organized by individuals, groups, or non-profit organizations.

Carol Cross, PhD, has professional experience that includes introducing arts experiences in nontraditional settings, working with adults and adolescents experiencing homelessness or incarceration, and with at-risk and high-risk youth. She has also taught at the university level. A visual artist and educator, Cross holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Emily Carr University of Art + Design, Vancouver, British Columbia. Her Master's thesis focused on the social benefits of establishing sustainable community programs, and education as social intervention for youths at risk. In her efforts to build positive social change and early intervention in schools, and raise awareness of violence as a social problem, she set up a free, after-school photography and writing program for teens at risk in Vancouver with the support of Provincial and Government of Canada funding. Awarded a Government of Canada contract, she began working with incarcerated male and female teens in British Columbia. Her doctoral research, a qualitative study, examined critical pedagogy, adolescent development, and research into the governance and policies surrounding incarcerated male and female youth. She is the author of Juvenile Justice and Expressive Arts: Creative Disruptions through Art Programs for and with Teens in a Correctional Institution. She holds a PhD from the University of Victoria.

Chapter 1 - Setting the Stage Chapter 2 - Social Justice: Shifting Powers Chapter 3 - Community Regeneration: Making the Connection Chapter 4 - Community as a Place to Begin Chapter 5 - The Projects Chapter 6 - Collaborative Projects Postscript - Moving Forward Appendix A: A Reflective Letter by Patrick (Pat) R. Appendix B: A Reflective Letter by Rafael Fuentes Appendix C: A Reflective Letter by Tye S. PART II: Peer-Support Workbook: Words from the Inside-Out Index