Pennsylvania combines a justifiable pride in the quality of its juvenile justice system with a strong agreement among stakeholders regarding areas where it can be made better. The state was selected for the initiative because it had already demonstrated successful juvenile justice reforms by developing stable and sensible funding streams for youth services, giving juvenile court professionals a voice in law and policy-making, expanding community-based alternatives to incarceration, and using evidence-based interventions with delinquent youth. With support from Models for Change, Pennsylvania is building on these and other strengths to become an exemplary system.
Background documents