Recidivism

• Youth crime in Australia has been the subject of sensationalist media coverage and growing community concern, particularly in north Queensland.
• These young people wanted to feel safe and included in the community, but often felt the opposite.

Diversion is better than harsher punishment

• But such young offenders also often experience marginalisation, over-surveillance, structural bias and racism.
• In Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are over-represented in child protection services, and there’s a damaging drift from child protection and out-of-home care into youth justice services.
• Harsher punishment doesn’t divert young people away from offending.

What we studied

• First, we reviewed relevant national and international publications and reports that looked at perceptions of at risk children and youth about social services provided to them.
• It helps support relationships between the young people and their families/carers, providing meals and overnight accommodation when they are in crisis.
• It encourages young people to come to the diversionary service in the evening instead of roaming the streets.

What young people at risk of offending told us

• One young person involved in the photography project said:
  Us kids can’t go to shopping centres without, you know, police coming.
• Another young person added:
  They are too racist against the Black people.
• Pointing to fears about being unsafe on the streets, one young person said the diversionary service staff “keep us safe from vigilantes”.
• These findings provide a unique view of youth offending through the eyes of young people, which can contribute to improving services that divert young people away from crime and can help to connect alienated young people with the community.

• Eastern has a long history of engagement with the Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility, offering uncredited courses to incarcerated people since 2008.
• In July 2023, the Michigan legislature approved $250K in funding for Eastern to launch the bachelor program at the facility.
• Additionally, "Completing a degree boosts self-esteem for incarcerated students and provides them with fulfilling activities during incarceration," said Meghan Lechner, director of the College in Prison Program.
• The academic program is expected to help incarcerated people achieve greater job opportunities and higher earnings when released back into society.

• With this expansion, Televerde now provides life-changing career opportunities to 127 women across its Indiana operations.
• "The launch of our new Televerde contact center at the Indiana Women's Prison signifies more than just the growth of our operations.
• We're eager to assemble another high-performing Televerde team in Indiana, poised to drive exceptional business outcomes for our clients."
• Televerde initially hired nine women to staff the new Indiana facility, with plans to expand its workforce rapidly.

• Dallas, June 22, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With the support of the Feeding Texas network of food banks and anti-hunger champions across the state, the Texas Legislature passed several new laws that will prevent hunger for Texans experiencing food insecurity.
• “This year’s legislative session was our most successful since Texas food banks came together as a network over 20 years ago to engage state lawmakers in the fight against hunger,” said Celia Cole, CEO of Feeding Texas.
• From small, rural communities to major metropolitan areas, these new laws will help feed Texas families and support food banks across the state.
• Feeding Texas leads a unified effort for a hunger-free Texas.