SPARC: It's not a decision. It's a DISORDER.

Format

Individual Presentation

First Presenter's Institution

Chatham County Juvenile Court

First Presenter’s Email Address

bfoley@chathamcounty.org

First Presenter's Brief Biography

Brooke Foley is a Licensed Professional Counselor and is employed as the Clinical Coordinator at Chatham County Juvenile Court in Savannah, GA. She has been with the court for 7 years, completing assessments with court-involved youth who may be in need of further evaluation or therapeutic intervention. Brooke also serves as the coordinator for the SPARC Program, Georgia's first Juvenile Mental Health Court. She graduated from Valdosta State University in 2005 with a B.S. in psychology. She completed her Master's in Counselor Education from Georgia Southern University in 2008. Brooke has a passion for working with at-risk youth to help them overcome their negative labels.

Second Presenter's Institution

Chatham County Juvenile Court

Second Presenter’s Email Address

mwjinks@chathamcounty.org

Second Presenter's Brief Biography

Maya Jinks started her career as an educator and had the opportunity to work in elementary, middle and high schools. She specialized in the area of special education and later transitioned to a district position as a Behavioral Interventionist, where she conducted district-wide trainings on de-escalation techniques in the classroom for both teachers and administrators. In addition, she became the First Positive Behavior Interventionist and Supports (PBIS) Coordinator for the Savannah/Chatham County Public School System. Ms. Jinks partnered with schools on the implementation of PBIS within each entity. Mrs. Jinks is currently the Educational Advocate at Chatham County Juvenile Court, a role that was created as a collaboration between the court and the school system. Mrs. Jinks provides support to all court involved youth, both delinquent and dependent. Some of her responsibilities include providing school records to the court, attending school meetings, assisting with school registration, providing education recommendations and much more. Mrs. Jinks collaborates with parents, probation officers, case managers, CASA, guardian’s ad litem, community partners, etc. to make sure all students are receiving FAPE (Free and Appreciate Public Education). It’s her goal to make sure all students have the opportunity to receive an appropriate education despite the missteps they may have made in the past. Mrs. Jinks’ mission is to change the lens of those who doubt that children are capable of soaring beyond their circumstances. “Every kid is one caring adult away from being a success story” –John Shipp.

Location

Session Four breakouts (Scarbrough 4)

Strand #1

Health: Mental & Physical Health

Strand #2

Heart: Social & Emotional Skills

Relevance

Health: The presentation will focus on adolescent mental health in the context of the juvenile justice system.

Heart: SPARC assists youth in gaining emotional regulation techniques as well as building appropriate social skills.

Brief Program Description

This workshop will provide an overview of Chatham County's Juvenile Mental Health Court, also known as SPARC (Specialized Probation and Rehabilitation Court). Established in 2009, SPARC was the first Juvenile Mental Health Court in the State of Georgia. The purpose of the program is to rid the youth of negative labels, to increase resiliency, to promote healing, and to provide education to reduce future court involvement.

Summary

This workshop will provide an overview of Chatham County's Juvenile Mental Health Court, also known as SPARC (Specialized Probation and Rehabilitation Court). Established in 2009, SPARC was the first Juvenile Mental Health Court in the State of Georgia. SPARC uses a multi-disciplinary team approach to assist families and youth with specific mental health diagnoses. The court team consists of the judge, specialized probation, educational advocate, mental health clinician, case manager, child's attorney, and ADA. Additional team members include Gateway Youth to Adult Director, CASA, and guardian ad litem.

The program is personalized to meet the needs of each family and connect them with community resources, therapy, educational support, and pro-social programming. Programmatic goals are focused on helping families obtain the skills and resources needed to successfully navigate the mental health system without future court involvement. The interventions are personalized for each youth and family to build resilience and coping skills. “Success” is measured by the small victories such as taking medications as prescribed, attending school, keeping appointments, and reducing violations. SPARC uses a system of sanctions and incentives to shape appropriate responses and assist youth in making positive decisions. The program also attempts to case away labels and focus on healing through treatment and rehabilitation.

The workshop will also provide an overview of mental health through the lens of the Juvenile Justice System. As this work evolves, it is evident that delinquent behavior is not always a decision. Sometimes it is a response caused by a disorder or a traumatic event. Helping the youth and families build resilience and overcome barriers within the system decreases the likelihood of recidivism.

Evidence

Evidence can be provided through the Counsel of Juvenile Court Judges as well as through our own data collecting system. This can be presented as part of discussion on best practices and implementation.

Learning Objective 1

Understand the purpose of juvenile mental health courts

Learning Objective 2

Reframe how people perceive adolescent behavior among court-involved youth

Learning Objective 3

Gain knowledge of interventions used to increase resiliency.

Keyword Descriptors

mental health court, juvenile, delinquent, probation, adolescent resilience

Presentation Year

2023

Start Date

3-7-2023 8:30 AM

End Date

3-7-2023 9:45 AM

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Mar 7th, 8:30 AM Mar 7th, 9:45 AM

SPARC: It's not a decision. It's a DISORDER.

Session Four breakouts (Scarbrough 4)

This workshop will provide an overview of Chatham County's Juvenile Mental Health Court, also known as SPARC (Specialized Probation and Rehabilitation Court). Established in 2009, SPARC was the first Juvenile Mental Health Court in the State of Georgia. The purpose of the program is to rid the youth of negative labels, to increase resiliency, to promote healing, and to provide education to reduce future court involvement.