This report examines lessons learned and strategies adopted for service delivery by social services organizations in Los Angeles County, California that support the needs of homeless individuals (or at risk of becoming homeless) and those involved in the criminal justice system, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report covers the shift to providing virtual services, including video- and telephone-based care, and the barriers to delivering these services to those lacking technology access. It also discusses the difficulties in requiring clients to maintain shelter-in-place procedures, and increased workplace stress with reductions in staff and organizational revenue.

This practice guide illustrates case management practices that are appropriate and effective for promoting youth well-being and provides methods for helping youth on probation understand and take responsibility for their actions. The guide highlights how diversion from formal court processing could be used more often with youth otherwise engaging in normal adolescent behavior. Also noted is how probation professionals need to engage with the families of youth in transition and their communities while working in partnership with other public systems and service providers to utilize a strengths-based, trauma-responsive approach for positive adolescent development.

This report notes the relationship between living in poverty and the likelihood of incarceration, homelessness, becoming a single parent, or failing to complete high school. The report also highlights how poverty and its stress affect brain development as well as the capacity for problem solving and goal setting. The report includes important research developments that point to how brain science might be used to support the capacity of individuals to navigate poverty and related stress for personal mobility.

This issue brief from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation defines “social capital” in the context of human services programs. To illustrate how social capital can be strengthened for incarcerated or reentering persons, the brief identifies lessons learned from three programs: RecycleForce, Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, and Prison Fellowship Academy at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women. The brief also highlights six considerations for implementing models to build social capital among this population.

The Office of Human Services Policy at the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation will host a virtual training series and offer concrete strategies for organizations working with incarcerated/reentering participants to help them improve their outcomes through building and leveraging social capital. The series will also describe considerations for measuring social capital. The first of these virtual training sessions will be held on August 4, 2020 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. ET. Subsequent sessions will be held bi-weekly on Tuesdays during the same time slot.

The National Association of Workforce Development Professionals will conduct a webinar on July 21, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. ET to cover job development techniques, interviewing skills, and client preparation for returning citizens to enter employment. Presentations will address how to better serve reentry clients and develop partnerships with employers and how to prepare these individuals to qualify for job opportunities. There will also be discussion about employment readiness, work experience and skill gaps, and how to find resources for returning citizens. A registration fee is charged for participation in this webinar.

The National Criminal Justice Training Center hosted a three-part webinar series to provide support staff, administrators, and professionals with training on understanding trauma and successful ways to interact with traumatized clients: Part 1 presented an overview of trauma; Part 2 focused on intergenerational trauma, the people impacted by trauma, and how criminal behavior and trauma are connected; and Part 3 highlighted ways to interact with traumatized clients.

The National Association for Welfare Research and Statistics is hosting a series of virtual workshops that address research on topics of interest to human service professionals throughout the summer. Future workshops will cover Machine Learning in Human Services Contexts, Cross-System Collaboration to Serve Justice-Involved Clients, and the Family First Prevention Services Act. Recordings of previously held workshops on TANF Responses to COVID-19 and Domestic Violence during COVID-19 are available.

This guide from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration includes topics and resources to serve women who are reentering communities after incarceration and intends to help them succeed. The guide is a checklist that seeks to: identify critical reentry needs; address substance use disorders; build links to mental health care; address physical and reproductive health care; provide culturally competent services; provide trauma-informed services; build healthy, trusting relationships; reestablish family relationships; facilitate payment of justice system fines and fees; and increase self-efficacy through certified peer specialists.

This research-to-practice brief summarizes interview findings from juvenile justice system administrators in communities that are moving away from youth prisons and toward investing in community-based solutions. The interviews from these agency administrators identified four key lessons: maximize windows of opportunity to establish a continuum of community care; develop strategic partnerships with advocates to prioritize relevant issues for juvenile justice reform; collaborate with youth, families, and community members who interact with juvenile ex-offenders; and use data and research to make the case for closing youth prisons. Interviews were conducted with juvenile justice administrators in Louisiana, Wisconsin, New York, and the District of Columbia.