School behind bars: Meeting the needs of traumatized kids

We speak with Melissa Svigelj-Smith, graduate fellow at University of California at Santa Cruz, about her experience teaching high school students awaiting case outcomes at the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention Center. Meaningful communication with students’ schools about records and students’ social emotional needs was often very difficult. Ms. Svigelj-Smith talks about the ethical dilemma of wanting to advocate for improved resources for students without wanting more money to go into a system that kids should not be in in the first place.  And in many cases, in Cleveland and throughout the country, prosecutors charge children as adults depriving them of any access whatsoever to educational resources. Overview 00:00-00:45 Intros 00:45-04:01 Young people at the juvenile detention center 04:01-05:30 Structure of the educational program 05:30-07:51 School of One 07:51-11:51 Communication with high schools about student needs 11:51-13:40 Offering social emotional support within the detention center 13:40-14:37 Cultural responsiveness; effects of Ohio’s high-stakes testing 14:37-16:24 Interactions with students’ families 16:24-17:02 Transitions back to high schools 17:02-17:47 Mentorship 17:47-22:00 Ethical issues 22:00-25:13 Ending adjudication of young people to adult jails 25:13- Outro

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