October 21, 2022 Redeploy Illinois Oversight Board Meeting

Audience

Redeploy Illinois Oversight Board Members and Staff. The public is welcome to attend.

Date/Time

  • Friday, October 21, 2022
  • 9:30am to 11:30am

Location

Agenda

  1. Call to order/Roll call/Approval of Minutes
    1. August 19th RIOB Meeting
  2. DHS Updates
  3. FY23 Program and Expenditures updates
    1. Redeploy Illinois program expenditures, commitments, & number served
    2. FY23 ICOY Expenditures update
  4. Planning Grant Updates
    1. Cook County Planning Grant Final Report review/decision
    2. Champaign County and Peoria County planning grant updates
  5. RI All Sites Meeting Report
  6. RIOB Membership Work Group Update
  7. RIOB Focus update
  8. Topics for planning meeting discussion
  9. Adjourn

Upcoming meetings/events:

  • Data Work Group Meeting: Tuesday, December 6th, 2022
  • Executive Committee Meeting (if necessary): Friday, November 18th, 2022
  • Full Board Meeting: Friday, December 16th, 2022
  • Membership Work Group Meeting
  • Redeploy Focus Meeting

Minutes

  1. Call to order/Roll call/Approval of Minutes
    Secretary Grace Hou called the meeting to order at 9:33am. Kristen Marshall confirmed there was a quorum present. Secretary Hou stated that the roll call and approval of the August 19, 2022 RIOB Meeting Minutes would be called together.
    1. Motion: Secretary Hou called for a motion to approve the August 19th RIOB meeting minutes. Rick Velasquez moved approval of minutes and roll call. Judge Walter Brandon seconded the motion.
      Secretary Hou called on Ms. Marshall to call the roll and approval of minutes.
      Roll Call:
      Grace Hou: Present/Approve
      Delrice Adams:  Present/Approve
      Janet Ahern:  Present/Approve
      Judge Walter Brandon:  Present/Approve
      Elizabeth Clarke:  Present/Approve
      Avik Das:  Present/Approve
      Dan Hunt: Not Present
      Krish Mohip:  Present/Approve
      Heidi Meuller: Not Present
      Peter Perry:  Present/Approve
      John Johnson: Present/Approve
      John Rekowski:  Present/Approve
      Tracy Senica: Not Present
      Anne Studzinski:  Present/Approve
      Rick Velasquez: Present/Approve
      Paula Wolff: Not Present
      Staff: Erica Hughes, Kelsey Kleidon, Kristen Marshall, Karrie Rueter, Susie Schoenrock, Honorable Colleen Sheehan
      Guests: Honorable Maryam Ahmad, MaryAnn Dyar, Garien Gatewood, Omar Jamil, Diane McGhee, Honorable Michael Tomin
      Approval of Minutes: No opposition. Motion carried.
  2. DHS Updates
    Secretary Hou reported that Honorable George Timberlake has resigned from the board after many years of service. Secretary Hou remarked on the leadership and tenacity of Judge Timberlake. Elizabeth Clarke added that Redeploy Illinois would not exist without Judge Timberlake as he was the first judge to step forward and participate. Ms. Clarke continued that his example and leadership made the pilot a reality and the Board owes him a debt.
    Ms. Hou invited questions. Karrie Rueter suggested dedicating the report to Judge Timberlake and adding a write-up on his work. Erica Hughes reminded that the report is also dedicated to the sites, clients, and families involved with the program.
    Motion: Secretary Hou called for a motion to include a tribute to Judge Timberlake in the current Annual Report. Anne Studzinski motioned and Ms. Clarke seconded the motion. All present approved.
  3. FY23 Program and Expenditures updates
    Secretary Hou asked Ms. Hughes to provide an overview of the fiscal year 2023 program and expenditures updates. Ms. Hughes shared the expenditure handout illustrating that currently, a quarter of the way through the year, most Redeploy Illinois sites are spending their money though newer sites are not spending as much. New sites have been placed early on the site visit calendar to see what kind of technical assistance may be needed. A site visit with Lake County will occur on October 27, 2022, and Sangamon County will follow soon after.
    Mr. Velasquez commented that the line item for ICOY staff looked low and questioned if this was due to open positions. Susie Schoenrock responded that numbers appear low because this is the first report, reflecting only the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2023. Further, Ms. Schoenrock explained that a new administrative assistant has just been hired and the Redeploy program is fully staffed.
  4. Planning Grant Updates
    Secretary Hou called on Ms. Marshall to speak about planning grants. Ms. Marshall stated that the final report for the Cook County planning grant has been received. She directed the Board to handouts including the final report and a summary detailing the planning process, program structure, referral process, and service provider expectations and evaluation guidelines.
    Peter Perry recused himself from this discussion and vote, as his office works directly with youth who would benefit from the Redeploy program, if approved.
    Cook County requested $5,836,287.93 for four court calendars - Calendar 52 on the southeast side of Chicago; Calendar 53 in west central Chicago; Calendar 61 on the west side of Chicago, and Calendar 76 in south suburban Cook Country. Cook County proposes use of a day reporting treatment center model operating Monday through Friday from 9:00 am -9:00 pm. Funding has been requested for one structured environment or a Redeploy Hub in each of the calendars to provide daily services in the community.
    Ms. Marshall welcomed representatives from Cook County to introduce themselves and take questions. Representatives included the following individuals:
    Mark Werner, Section Chief, Suburban Probation Services, Cook County Juvenile Probation and Court Services
    Judge Michael Toomin, Co-Chair of Planning Committee
    Judge Maryam Ahmad, Associate Judge and former Chief of the Juvenile Justice Bureau for the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. Co-chair of Planning Committee
    Diane Walsh, Legal Officer for the Juvenile Justice Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County
    Diane McGhee, Deputy Superintendent, Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center
    Ms. Clarke requested a verbal overview of the program and project development history.
    Mr. Werner stated that planning began over a year ago by Judge Ahmad and Judge Toomin. The University of Chicago Crime Lab reviewed data from 2017-2020 to assess youth needs throughout the Department of Juvenile Justice. A committee of diverse stakeholders including judges, state's attorneys, public defenders, and community providers came together to develop a unique program building on existing services such as mentoring, multisystemic therapy, and cognitive behavioral therapy to provide an intensive outpatient program where youth may be stabilized and serviced in a safe environment with access to transportation and meals. Youth will start services in the Hub and then transition to the home to access multisystemic and family therapy. All providers have built flex funds and incentives in their budgets. The program will also service juvenile sex offenders, problem sexual behavior, Class X felonies in accordance with judge's requests.
    Diane Walsh highlighted the social investigation undertaken that documented every service youth received when sent to Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, so they knew what kind of services the youth and youth's family need.
    Mr. Velasquez congratulated the team. He further commented on the hybrid approach, encompassing an evening and day reporting model, used by the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice for youth in Aftercare. He asked if the Cook County team spoke with the IDJJ about that experience. Additionally, Mr. Velasquez inquired about duration limits and exit strategy for youth in respite.
    Mr. Werner responded that the Cook County team was aware of the IDJJ aftercare program, and they appreciated their approach to doing whatever possible to meet the needs of youth to ensure that they are successful including transport to dental visits, job interviews, and other needs as they arose. He stated that respite care is individualized based on need and planned as short-term, 30 days or less.
    Avik Das thanked and congratulated the team. Mr. Das asked for a high-level description of foreseeable youth interactions and relationship management in the program. Mr. Werner indicated that safety is a priority that has been built into everything that is proposed including service learning, civic engagement, restorative justice, and group therapy components. He acknowledged that while some will be on day one of their journey in the hub as others are transitioning out, flexibility has been built in to take advantage of opportunities for peer-to-peer support.
    Mr. Das commented that the proposal and potential are rich and asked for a sense of a young person's journey through the level-system planned for better context, specifically around intake. He also inquired if the youth would be held in detention while waiting to enter the Redeploy program.
    Mr. Werner explained that youth are referred by a judge, post adjudication. Once onsite, youth may be in an evaluation period to assess fit for program via individualized wraparound staffing. If youth is determined unfit for Redeploy Hub for any reason, they will be connected to appropriate resources. At Level 1, youth will be in Hub every day for services such as education, vocation, individual and family therapy, along with any other identified needs. Progression through levels includes more time out of the Hub and in the community receiving services there. The anticipated duration of programming is one year.
    Judge Ahmad clarified that while youth may be held in detention, there are a number of offenses, including Class 4, 2, and some Class X offenses, where the youth would not be held in detention awaiting determination. Mark Werner added that youth can be assessed in the Hub while receiving services and cited the use of electronic monitoring as a practice for keeping youth out of detention.
    Ms. Clarke expressed excitement for the day and evening reporting model and the focus on housing instability, food, and flex funds to meet the needs of individuals in the program. Ms. Clarke stated her hope that the data captured in this program allows for the identification of triggers of court involvement and program responses used through the court instead of delinquency for young children.
    Janet Ahern asked how discrepancies in educational level and general educational needs of children will be met. Mr. Werner replied that if an individual is in school, they will remain in school. If youth is not in school, they will be in the Hub until they are reconnected with school. He cited strong relationships with the Chicago Public Schools Re-entry Team, City Colleges of Chicago, educational advocates, and public defender social workers to help youth re-enter school, enroll in GED, or vocational education as age, capability, and individual need allows.
    Judge Ahmad thanked Rick Velasquez and Peter Perry for creating an accommodating atmosphere for this work through approachability and receptiveness in meeting with the Cook County committee.
    Anne Studzinski indicated she was delighted to see that this plan includes an evaluation. The Board is planning an overall evaluation of Redeploy. She requested a pause on the evaluation until the Board is further along in their development an overall evaluation to ensure alignment.
    Judge Ahmad inquired how long the Board's evaluation development process may take, further explaining that the Cook County evaluation is not intended to measure only the efficacy of the program, but also to hold accountable to the general public, Cook County Board, and various additional parties.
    Mr. Velasquez agreed that Cook County's evaluation is specific to the process of implementing their pilot program and that implementation is a critical piece of learning what it takes to implement a Redeploy program.
    Ms. Studzinski concurred based on clarification that evaluation should go forward.
    Rick Velasquez observed that Cook County's application stipulates that providers will use the Cook County case management system for tracking their work but there will be additional data captured through YASI to be accounted for. Janet Ahern asked if Cook County may be asked to use the YASI system as well. Mr. Velasquez responded with the concern that this would be a duplicate effort creating an additional burden at the service provision level. Anne Studzinski agreed and added that in looking over the application there does seem to be the risk of over assessing youth, so streamlining will be necessary. In response, Ms. Hughes assured the group that attention will be paid to this moving forward.
    Secretary Hou, hearing no other questions, requested a motion to approve the application.
    Karrie Rueter asked to clarify if vote was for the application in general, or the requested funding amount. Secretary Hou indicated that this vote includes application and funding amount. Mr. Velasquez asked for confirmation that this money is available for use. Ms. Reuter responded that sufficient funding is available for this application at the requested amount.
    Motion: Secretary Hou amended the motion to include specification of the funding in the amount of $5,836,288.00. Ms. Studzinski moved to approve the application. Mr. Velasquez seconded. Secretary Hou called on Ms. Marshall to call the roll.
    Peter Perry abstained. No opposition. Motion carried.
    Secretary Hou invited Ms. Hughes to provide updates regarding planning grants for Champaign and Peoria. Ms. Hughes indicated that conversation with stakeholders continues including a session for community feedback and a focus on probation and court services with input from Judge Sheehan at the judiciary level. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Law and School of Social Work are interested in participating in the planning process and are seeking to set a meeting with judges before the end of the year. Ms. Hughes is in conversation with Champaign County to learn when they plan to submit their final application.
    Ms. Hughes moved on to update regarding Peoria County which at this time is meeting with local service providers including Family Core. Peoria County is planning to partner with an agency to have staff serve as client care coordinators, youth advocates, and family engagement specialists. Peoria is also speaking with agencies like Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities and Youth Advocate Program. Dr. Stevens at Illinois State University is close to completing his analysis. Peoria County is on track to submit their applicational by the December Board meeting.
  5. RI All Sites Meeting Report
    Secretary Hou invited Ms. Marshall and Ms. Hughes to introduce and discuss this agenda item. Ms. Marshall indicated that the Redeploy Illinois All Sites Meeting was held for the first time in three years in Bloomington on the 27th and 28th of September 2022 and was attended by representatives from current Redeploy sites and planning grant sites. Ms. Marshall further explained that this agenda item is combined with an update on the Redeploy Data Workgroup and invited Ms. Hughes to continue.
    Ms. Hughes expanded to say that the Data Work Group Meeting was an update on the proceedings of the all sites meeting due to the data-heavy subject matter. Programming included exploration and in-depth discussion of each matrix domain. Attendees discussed the impact of incentives, increased needs in schools, housing, and food stability to better define domains like Civic Engagement to include advocacy and empowerment, exemplified by voter registration.
    Ms. Hughes stated that the discussion was attended by David Robinson from Orbis Partners, who joined to hear the conversation around domains, site operations, and how sites gauge progress and success. He noted how helpful the input from site representatives is in guiding his work going forward. He then presented on Youth Assessment and Screening Instrument (YASI) and provided updates on the screening and data collection system for casework software.
    Ms. Hughes continued, describing discussions on who should be responsible for providing services and resources, citing that safety for clients, family, and staff came up frequently. As part of the meeting, representatives from Macon County shared that in collaboration with R3, youth collected survey data from neighborhood, provided recommendations based on the data, and hosted a town hall to share their findings and discuss further.
    Mark Bronke, a representative from the probation side, provided valuable insight in his presentation on moving beyond compliance and monitoring. Debbie Humphrey, head of Mental Health Board in Madison County, shared a presentation on mental health created specifically for youth audience and provided the full presentation to attendees so that teams may implement at their sites. Additionally, providers have indicated a need for training and education around domestic violence so there was a presentation on the cycle of violence and resources available to support staff and those affected. A final lecture provided tips and education to facilitate family engagement.
    Ms. Hughes thanked Betsy Clarke and John Johnson for attending along with staff members, Kristen Marshall, Judge Colleen Sheehan, and Susie Schoenrock. In particular, she noted Ms. Schoenrock's contributions to ensuring that the meeting ran smoothly.
    Attendees on the call were then invited to share their thoughts.
    Ms. Clarke began by saying she was thrilled to see representatives from program sites and experience the vibrancy of the people involved in Redeploy. Ms. Clarke continued to compliment DHS staff and communication efforts between providers and the Board. Ms. Clarke stated that her attendance reinforced her thoughts that sites need for flex dollars in program budgets and for food and housing that have already been discussed on this call, reiterating that it is not possible to address needs unless youth feel safe and secure in their homes. She also praised models such as YouthBuild, day reporting, and mental health initiatives that have been and continue to work. She suggested putting together a report on programs such as these to assist other geographic areas in their program development.
    Ms. Clarke further discussed MST and the opportunity to regionalize this tool in Illinois to allow for quick and substantial progress. She expressed concerns about racial stereotyping and stigmatization in data collection highlighting a need to focus more on data that matters to individual safety and mental health reporting and less on perceptions that stereotype youth as dangerous.
    John Johnson added that having open conversations and connecting with providers and proposed sites helped him to better understand and share struggles across the programs. Mr. Johnson expressed gratitude for the opportunity to attend.
  6. RIOB Membership Work Group Update
    Secretary Hou thanked Mr. Velasquez for working on Membership recommendations and invited him to present. Mr. Velasquez explained that the Membership Working Group was formed more than a year ago and met a few times before going on hiatus to ensure that work was aligned with the overall direction of DHS before bringing recommendations to the board in three areas: recruitment, onboarding, and continuing education.
    Mr. Velasquez provided context that recruitment of new board members has historically been an internal process with a focus on existing networks of partners heavily involved in or related to the incarceration of young people as a matter of necessity to ensure representation. The work group found that a transparent process for discretionary appointments, centering equity and unheard voices like Redeploy participants and their families, law enforcement, business, and private philanthropy may be fitting going forward.
    Mr. Velasquez explained that as revision of the application process is considered, clarity around members' expectations and responsibilities is needed. The work group recommended for an onboarding packet to be created and made available to new board members that includes the most recent annual report, a member roster with short biographies and photos, a summary of voting procedures, committee work, and introduction of new business, and explanation of the four required training. In addition, another proposed element of the onboarding process is to offer new members a meeting with staff to build relationships and create space for questions. Considering the addition of non-system-related workers as board members, a volunteer board mentor model may be advantageous to check in with new members, help build connections, and address any questions.
    Finally, Mr. Velasquez unveiled the third recommendation area, the formalization of continuing education to offer one to two opportunities throughout the year to broaden the scope of opportunities for growth. Mr. Velasquez shared, as an example, his experience seeing a parent-led presentation on the impact and mid-diagnoses and treatment of fetal alcohol syndrome at the Juvenile Justice Leadership meeting. Additionally, he informed a recommendation for reports on innovative practices at program sites as a proactive measure of engagement outside of site visits.
    Mr. Velasquez stressed the importance of building a strong board moving forward and invited additional comments from other Working Group Members as well as any questions or concerns from the board to indicate that this work is on the right track.
    Secretary Hou responded indicating that she viewed this presentation as a very thoughtful process to strengthen the board and make regenerative going forward.
    MaryAnn Dyar added that stipends provided to the Youth Advisory Board might be similarly helpful in bringing on clients as members. She shared that Washington state has added compensation for representatives with lived experience on all boards and commissions as a line item in budgets at $200 per individual per meeting and would like to see this happen in Illinois. Mr. Velasquez responded that as part of a push for equity and removing barriers to representation this is a conversation that the work group would love to be a part of.
    Rick Velasquez finished by sharing his thanks and stating that the membership committee will continue to move this work forward following this discussion.
  7. RIOB Focus update
    Secretary Hou turned the meeting to Anne Studzinski to provide an update on Redeploy Illinois Focused program. Ms. Studzinski shared that George Timberlake agreed to return for this project and Dan Hunt had joined the committee to provide a perspective of probation and the courts to move this work forward. A first meeting was held October 11, 2022, and another meeting has been scheduled for October 23, 2022. Ms. Studzinski invited board members to attend.
    Ms. Studzinski summarized that Redeploy is in 45 counties in Illinois. Over the last three years, there were 171 instances across 27 counties where Redeploy missed an opportunity to serve a child and the child went on to IDJJ. This is an equity issue, and collaboration must be done with local probation departments to get youth because they have the information to make recommendations for youth that could get locally provided services. Lee, Logan, and DuPage are the only countries that have utilized Focus.
    In the time since the Focused program began, misdemeanor offenses are no longer eligible and the number of youths in IDJJ has dropped dramatically, as has the length of stay. Probation has moved its assessment and data tool from the YASI to the Juvenile Risk Assessment. Finally, approximately one third of Chief Managing Officers in probation have turned over, meaning that there are people who do not remember the program.
    The stated aspiration of the Focused work group is that all youth in Illinois have a chance to receive Redeploy services as an alternative to incarceration. The work moving forward falls under two categories:
    1. Consideration of making funding requests easy to use and built with data that counties have easy access to. To address any challenges of a written application, the term is changing from "application" to "funding request".
    2. Outreach and messaging to encourage counties that send more than one youth per year to IDJJ to apply. This outreach will emphasize that this is not a competitive funding opportunity.
      Ms. Studzinski closed by encouraging questions and stated the goal is to have recommendations to the board for the December meeting.

      Mr. Velasquez asked if data on the offenses related to commitments is available. Ms. Studzinski directed Mr. Velasquez to the Board meeting handouts provided explaining that this data does not include youths who have been charged with Class X felonies and reminded the group that inclusion of this group in Redeploy is decided on the local level. Ms. Hughes continued that she has access to anonymized case-level data and will run an analysis to identify class levels and offenses committed.

  8. Topics for planning meeting discussions
    Secretary Hou stated that at the August meeting, proposed topics of discussion for the upcoming planning meeting including sites with zero commitments, commitment baseline requirements, and youth and guns were identified. Staff are now interested in input on substantive and logistical items for a planning meeting.
    Ms. Marshall asked if the Board had additional topics of discussion. After these are identified, Board members will be asked to rank the importance of those topics.
    Secretary Hou inquired if the board has interest in information around work on Reimagine Public Safety and the work that the Adult Redeploy Board has been doing on equity and racial equity.
    Ms. Studzinski indicated interest in more information about the violence prevention work of DHS as well as kids and guns wondering is these are topics better fit for a training than a planning meeting. Ms. Studzinski expressed the need to talk about sites with zero commitments in the planning meeting.
    Mr. Das suggested building on Ms. Studzinski's presentation to learn more about the narrative that youth who remain in justice system are more serious or challenging. Mr. Das would like to hear, from Redeploy provider's perspective, how sites are using detention and if there is correlation between detention practices and Redeploy.
    Delrice Adams brought forth the suggestion of discussing a new dual-status initiative that will resource youth in both the juvenile justice system and the Department of Child and Family Services. Ms. Adams asked in an introductory meeting how Juvenile RDI fit in and based on response would like to proactively consider how RDI will coordinate with that initiative.
    Ms. Hughes indicated that in her review of Illinois Association of Juvenile Justice meetings there is funding and suggested that RDI planners collaborate with other planners to streamline and avoid duplication of efforts so that dollars and be allocated most effectively.
    Ms. Ahern recommended the topic of juvenile mental health, referencing new statewide processes and new AIOC training for probation officers to see if there is opportunity to borrow from, be involved in, or attend those trainings. Ms. Studzinski stated that she would like to see this from a trauma perspective in collaboration with CBAT-O work.
    Mr. Velasquez recommended the planning meeting include a retrospective look at goals and priorities to assess the degree to which RDI has met its goals and if they are still relevant or need updating.
    Ms. Hughes sought comment on what is considered the most pressing topic. Ms. Studzinski responded that the only thing pressing Is planning for sites with zero commitments who then have commitments in a future year. Other topics may require more, or less, attention than a single planning meeting would allow, but this is an answer that sites in this situation will need soon.
    Ms. Marshall thanked the board for their direction.
    • Upcoming meetings/events:
      Secretary Hou provided list of upcoming meetings and events:
      • Redeploy Focus Meeting, Tuesday, October 23, 2022
      • Executive Committee Meeting (if necessary): Friday, November 18, 2022
      • Data Work Group Meeting: Tuesday, December 6, 2022
      • Full Board Meeting: Friday, December 16, 2022
      • Membership Work Group Meeting, TBD
  9. Adjourn
    Judge Walter Brandon motion to adjourn. Rick Velasquez seconded.
    Meeting adjourned at 11:28 am.