Social Work Intervention Program

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FORENSIC CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK SERVICES
&
CASE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT

SCREENINGS & ASSESSMENTS, COUNSELING, BRIEF THERAPY,
EDUCATION, CRISIS INTERVENTION, RESOURCE LINKAGE
& REFERRAL, SUPPORTIVE SERVICES TO DETENTION STAFF

Intersection of Mental Health and Juvenile Justice

2023 SWIP Annual Report

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Facts for Families

HIPPA in JDCs

NASHIA OBISSS

TBI Resource Roadmap

For 2025, SWIP is excited to announce that we have entered into a partnership with UAMS and AR Children's Hospital to screen Youth for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) through the National Association of State Head Injury Administrators (NASHIA) Online Brain Injury Screening and Support System (OBISSS). Research indicates that 40% or more of persons involved in the justice system have TBIs that may be impacting functioning.

Located in beautiful Northwest Arkansas, the Social Work Intervention Program (SWIP), at the Washington County JDC is pleased to announce on-site, clinical Internship opportunities with the SWIP program, for the 2025 summer and 2025-2026 academic year. With 20+ years experience hosting BSW, MSW, Counseling, and Psychology Interns/Clerks, this highly sought internship is a dynamic opportunity for Interns, affiliated with an accredited University, to gain experience in clinical work, while working with mitigating factors, within the legal system. Although non-paid, this Internship features hands-on experiences with assessment, forensic report writing, brief therapy, case management, group work, court liaison and more, while offering flexible hours during the business day, once orientation and training have occurred and includes freedom from the limitation of managed care in practice. This internship is for those students who wish to challenge themselves to grow personally and professionally, and who are highly motivated to best serve their Clients.

"Emotional, behavioral, and mental health issues, learning and developmental disabilities, cognitive impairment (including TBIs), substance use issues, and traumatic psychosocial factors effecting functioning in children and adolescents who are involved in the juvenile justice system are disproportionately high compared to the general population and significantly effect accountability for youth involved in the juvenile justice system (Shelley Clingan, LCSW)". "It is now well established that the vast majority of youth in the juvenile justice system, approximately 70%, suffer from mental health disorders [excluding behavior disorders], with 25% experiencing disorders so severe that their ability to function is significantly impaired (National Center for Mental Health in Juvenile Justice)". For numerous reasons, these dynamic issues are often misidentified, unidentified, or unaddressed resulting in repeated involvement with the juvenile justice system (Coalition for Juvenile Justice; National Center on Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice; Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; National Institute of Mental Health, National Center for Mental Health in Juvenile Justice). In an effort to acknowledge and address the underlying role that these factors have in crimes and status offenses committed by youth, the Washington Regional Juvenile Detention Center hired a full time clinical Social Worker in 2004, whose role includes being both a forensic social worker and Mental Health Professional and is the first detention center in the State of Arkansas to do so.

Services
A primary service of the program is completing court ordered clinical assessments (evaluating the biological, psychological, social, spiritual, cultural, and generational functioning across various domains and systems to include the environmental impact of traumatic incidents on psychosocial development) of Youth who are detained and then making recommendations to the AR Fourth Judicial District Circuit Court, Juvenile Division 3 and Division 8 about the needs of the Youth, with subsequent referral and case management assistance to obtain services. The program also offers crisis intervention, case management, psycho-social education, and brief therapy services to Youth and their families. Screenings are done for mental illness, trauma, developmental disabilities, and brain injury.

VISION STATEMENT

THE VISION OF THE SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION PROGRAM IS TO REDUCE THE RECIDIVISM RATE OF YOUTH DETAINED AT THE REGIONAL JUVENILE JUSTICE DETENTION CENTER BY PROVIDING SUPPORTIVE AND EMPOWERING SERVICES.

MISSION STATEMENT

THE PURPOSE OF THE SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION PROGRAM IS TO PROVIDE CASE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT AND CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK SERVICES TO ASSIST YOUTH DETAINED AT THE REGIONAL JUVENILE DETENTION CENTER, MEET THEIR PHYSICAL, MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, AND SPIRITUAL NEEDS THROUGH CULTURALLY COMPETENT AND GENDER SPECIFIC PRACTICE. THE PROVISION OF THESE SERVICES IS A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT WITH THE DETENTION PROGRAMMING TO ENSURE THAT THE YOUTH DETAINED AT THE CENTER ARE OFFERED A REHABILITATIVE EXPERIENCE.

Sampling of Issues from JDC

"There is no single cause of delinquency and violence. Delinquents, especially chronic delinquents, exhibit a variety of social and psychological deficits in their backgrounds. These deficits, often referred to as risk factors, stem from breakdowns in five influential domains in juveniles' lives: neighborhood, family, school, peers, and individual characteristics . . . Some youth lack healthy parental guidance and monitoring. Some youth have cognitive and psychological deficits that make social and academic success difficult. Some attend disorganized and disruptive schools and fail to engage in academic pursuits. Some live in chaotic neighborhoods with few resources or outlets for positive social activities. Some are excluded from prosocial peer groups and have few, if any, wholesome friends . . . These risk factors, particularly when several are present, increase the likelihood of delinquency and violence. Conditions such as maltreatment or neglect by family members and others, a community with a large population of delinquent juveniles and gangs, ready access to drugs and guns, and an unsafe school increase the chance that a youth will make unhealthy or unlawful choices . . . Additionally, when a child's family life is filled with violence, problem behaviors, poor parental monitoring, and inconsistent disciplinary practices or maltreatment, a child's risk of delinquency increases . . . Youth exhibiting combinations of these deficits in multiple domains of their lives are at highest risk of delinquency" . OJJDP National Criminal Justice Reference Service report ‘Combating Violence and Delinquency: The National Juvenile Justice Action Plan

UAMS BRAIN INJURY PROGRAM

NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR JUVENILE SERVICES BEST PRACTICES

NAVIGATING FUNDING FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN AR for YOUTH

NWA OUTPATIENT CLINIC OPTIONS - NOT EXCLUSIVE

NWA NEURODEVELOPMENTAL CLINIC OPTIONS - NOT EXCLUSIVE

AR DEPT OF EDUCATION - SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES (RIGHTS)

A PARENT'S GUIDE TO SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES (DISABILTY RIGHTS OF AR)

SAMPLE LETTER REQUESTING AN EVALUATION FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES

PARENT SUPPORT HOTLINES

A CCESSING MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN ARKANSAS - Adults & Youth - includes uninsured and underinsured

ACCESSING A HIGHER LEVEL OF CARE

BEHAVIOR CHECKLIST