Community Justice Network of Youth Approach

The core activities of the CJNY are as follows: Identifying and recruiting new members; Providing peer-to-peer technical assistance to member organizations; Convening interest specific meetings; Conducting four regional meetings annually and convening a national conference; Developing a youth speakers bureau; Conducting a Youth Policy Forum; Publishing three newsletters annually; Maintaining a website; Providing information to the network about important issues, breaking news, campaign victories, organizational accomplishments, financial opportunities, and other resources.

Peer-to-Peer Exchange and Assistance Program

Peer-to-Peer Exchanges and Assistance Program is a cornerstone activity for the CJNY. The best practices endorsed in exchanges are critical for our members who work under extremely difficult circumstances while receiving little organizational support. The CJNY has the ability to connect member programs to other organizations in the network that share their mission, are similarly situated, have innovative practices or programs they can share, and/or administrative structures that can be replicated. Additionally, we have the capacity to monitor how sharing best practices improves service to young people and communities.

Speaker's Bureau

The CJNY Speaker's Bureau expands and enlarges the number of voices of young people of color that are able to influence policy makers. By dispatching CJNY members to give keynote addresses and conduct workshops at a variety of juvenile justice related conferences they are given the platform to speak about appropriate interventions in their lives. We have catalogued most of the major youth-oriented conferences and developed a list of speakers on a variety of topics that are capable and important to hear.

Youth Policy Forum

The Youth Policy Forum gives young adults the ability to bring their unique perspective to policy issues impacting their lives. The first forum will consider society's continued reliance on large institutional warehouses notwithstanding their expense, the violence within their walls, and their failure to rehabilitate. This discussion will engage young people, scholars, practitioners, formerly incarcerated youth, and advocates. The forum will also explore viable alternatives to the current system.

Upcoming Activities

For more information on CJNY Western region and/or Southern region activities please contact Ms. Ophelia Williams at owilliams@burnsinstitute.org 415-321-4100x102

For more information on CJNY Midwest region and/or Eastern region activities please contact Mr. Tshaka Barrows at tbarrows@burnsinstitute.org 415-321-4100x106

For more information on CJNY National activities please contact Atley Chock at achock@burnsinstitute.org 415-321-4100x110