Proposed 'Youth Village' Offers Various Services
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
If you think the proposed juvenile detention facility in Pierceton would be just a place where young criminals watch MTV, think again.
The "Youth Village" proposed by Corrections Corporation of America and tentatively planned for Pierceton would be similar to one operated in Vincennes.
The Southeast Indiana Regional Youth Village in Vincennes opened three years ago, houses upward of 130 juveniles and is considered state-of-the-art, according to several people familiar with the facility.
"My experience with CCA is they're a top-notch outfit," said Mark Avra, executive director of Children and Youth Services, a not-for-profit agency that serves in an advisory capacity with the Vincennes operation.
Avra said the facility received high marks in its first audit from American Corrections Accreditation, which looks at all aspects of the facility. The score was 100 percent, a rare feat for any facility.
"For them to receive that kind of accreditation off the git-go is outstanding," Avra said.
Vincennes offers a program-intensive environment stressing accountability and responsibility, said Susan Hart, spokesperson for CCA, located in Nashville, Tenn.
The facility includes different levels of service, meaning some residents would live in a more disciplined environment than others.
A range of services, including academic programming, life skills counseling, some vocational training, counseling, and alcohol and substance abuse in an intensive living environment, is available, Hart said.
"Every resident is individually diagnosed. It is not just a cookie- cutter approach," Hart said.
"With a younger individual, there's a much greater chance of reaching that individual and helping that individual develop some appropriate behavior and teach them how to problem-solve and make the right decisions," she said.
Kosciusko County officials toured the Vincennes "campus" last year and gave it rave reviews.
One of the few hurdles CCA faces in building a facility in Pierceton is approval from the county board of zoning appeals for an exception within an industrial zone. The operation would be considered a business because the county doesn't have any classification involving detention facilities.
Although CCA officials last month expressed an urgency to begin work, no request with CCA has been brought to the county plan office, said Area Plan director Dan Richard.
Architects and a construction firm are expected to be in Kosciusko County this week for preliminary work on the project, said Kosciusko Superior Court I Judge Duane Huffer, who has helped organize local efforts to secure a facility locally.
Kosciusko County has been negotiating with CCA for several months about constructing a facility that would serve upward of eight counties. The Pierceton location would represent a central location to serve the counties.
Counties would then lease space from the facility.
CCA will construct, operate and maintain the facility.
Vincennes' facility houses different types of youths, including children in need of services, juvenile delinquents and status offenders.
Huffer said the Pierceton youth village would be used for detention and post-detention purposes.
Hart said the Vincennes facility enjoys a good rapport with the community and it has never experienced any serious incidents with inmates leaving the facility.
"We have a very good record," Hart said.
"Our response in that community has been overwhelmingly positive," she said. [[In-content Ad]]
If you think the proposed juvenile detention facility in Pierceton would be just a place where young criminals watch MTV, think again.
The "Youth Village" proposed by Corrections Corporation of America and tentatively planned for Pierceton would be similar to one operated in Vincennes.
The Southeast Indiana Regional Youth Village in Vincennes opened three years ago, houses upward of 130 juveniles and is considered state-of-the-art, according to several people familiar with the facility.
"My experience with CCA is they're a top-notch outfit," said Mark Avra, executive director of Children and Youth Services, a not-for-profit agency that serves in an advisory capacity with the Vincennes operation.
Avra said the facility received high marks in its first audit from American Corrections Accreditation, which looks at all aspects of the facility. The score was 100 percent, a rare feat for any facility.
"For them to receive that kind of accreditation off the git-go is outstanding," Avra said.
Vincennes offers a program-intensive environment stressing accountability and responsibility, said Susan Hart, spokesperson for CCA, located in Nashville, Tenn.
The facility includes different levels of service, meaning some residents would live in a more disciplined environment than others.
A range of services, including academic programming, life skills counseling, some vocational training, counseling, and alcohol and substance abuse in an intensive living environment, is available, Hart said.
"Every resident is individually diagnosed. It is not just a cookie- cutter approach," Hart said.
"With a younger individual, there's a much greater chance of reaching that individual and helping that individual develop some appropriate behavior and teach them how to problem-solve and make the right decisions," she said.
Kosciusko County officials toured the Vincennes "campus" last year and gave it rave reviews.
One of the few hurdles CCA faces in building a facility in Pierceton is approval from the county board of zoning appeals for an exception within an industrial zone. The operation would be considered a business because the county doesn't have any classification involving detention facilities.
Although CCA officials last month expressed an urgency to begin work, no request with CCA has been brought to the county plan office, said Area Plan director Dan Richard.
Architects and a construction firm are expected to be in Kosciusko County this week for preliminary work on the project, said Kosciusko Superior Court I Judge Duane Huffer, who has helped organize local efforts to secure a facility locally.
Kosciusko County has been negotiating with CCA for several months about constructing a facility that would serve upward of eight counties. The Pierceton location would represent a central location to serve the counties.
Counties would then lease space from the facility.
CCA will construct, operate and maintain the facility.
Vincennes' facility houses different types of youths, including children in need of services, juvenile delinquents and status offenders.
Huffer said the Pierceton youth village would be used for detention and post-detention purposes.
Hart said the Vincennes facility enjoys a good rapport with the community and it has never experienced any serious incidents with inmates leaving the facility.
"We have a very good record," Hart said.
"Our response in that community has been overwhelmingly positive," she said. [[In-content Ad]]