Strategic Plan Update
Juvenile Services Education System of MSDE
The Strategic Plan Verification Project Newsletter: March 2016
In July 2015, the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) Juvenile Services Education System (JSES) finalized a three year strategic plan to guide and inform JSES work. The strategic plan promotes JSES’s mission and vision in all 14 schools in Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) residential facilities across the State. The strategic plan is centered on achieving the best educational outcomes for detained and committed youth in state operated facilities.
To this end, The Strategic Plan Verification Project is a contract between MSDE and the University of Maryland (UM) designed to gather and analyze information needed to gauge the progress towards achievement of the strategic plan. Project activities will support and provide practical information to assist MSDE and JSES administrators in improving student outcomes and the effectiveness of the JSES schools. The project is also designed to inform parents, advocates, and other stakeholders about the status of Juvenile Services Education and the steps JSES and MSDE are taking to achieve the goals and objectives of the strategic plan.
This is the first of what will be monthly updates on on the activities of the UM team and the status of services and implementation of the strategic plan in the 14 juvenile facilities in the state. We anticipate visiting each of the facilities on a quarterly basis and sharing our preliminary observations in this newsletter and in annual and semi-annual reports. The UM team will be interviewing teachers, students and staff, and reviewing and verifying data JSES collects on student performance. We will also observe classes, and conduct surveys of students, teachers, and other staff and plan to work with the advocacy community to interview and survey parents and other stakeholders about their experiences. We are excited to be a part of this exciting endeavor and look forward to being part of the transformation of education in the Maryland juvenile facilities.
Peter Leone, PhD.
Peter Leone is a Professor in the Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education at the University of Maryland. During his professional career he has taught adolescents with behavioral disorders in the public schools, trained teachers, and studied education programs and practices in schools, alternative programs, and institutions. Dr. Leone has monitored and evaluated education services and provided technical assistance to education programs in a number of states. He is the former Director of the National Center on Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice at the UM and currently serves as monitor of education services for the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice.
Carolyn Fink, PhD.
EDUCATION SPECIALIST
Carolyn Fink’s professional career has centered on working with children and youth around learning and behavior issues. Her dissertation involved reading tutoring for women in prison, listening to their school stories and experiences. At the University of Maryland, she has taught pre-service teachers, graduate students and undergraduates from all disciplines to consider disabilities as a broad interaction of individual and environment. As a teacher, she has enjoyed working with students of all ages from grade school to graduate school. She particularly likes teaching adults because she can have conversation, use humor, and share experiences. Dr. Fink has spent much time in classrooms observing and encouraging best practices.
Mi Ji Kim M.Ed
EDUCATION SPECIALIST
Mi Ji Kim has a passion for teaching and instruction. She earned an undergraduate and Master’s degree in English at Notre Dame of Maryland and a Master’s degree in Special Education from the University of Maryland, where she is currently a PhD candidate. She has taught numerous courses in the College of Education and has served as a supervisor for student teachers for the teacher certification program at UMD. In addition the work she does for the University she also works as an instructional coach at CEEAS-The Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings a non-profit in D.C. that helps alternative schools in locked facilities implement transformational, student- focused practices designed to significantly improve the life chances of students.
JSES Education: Partnerships and Practices
This Month's Highlight is from....Thomas J. S. Waxter Children's Center
When our team visited Waxter a couple of weeks ago, the Principal Prakash Anthony shared that the Center has started a partnership with Pen or Paper (POP) an organization that provides mentors as well as programming for the youth in his facility. Here is the link to the website if you want to check in out! http://www.penorpencilmovement.org/
The Strategic Plan Verification Project
Email: miji.cosmo@verizon.net
Location: University of MD, College Park, MD, United States
Phone: 410 707 7912
Twitter: @MiJiKim3