The first year of the Juvenile Services (JS) Day School is wrapping up after serving seven students who had either been suspended or expelled from school.
“Overall, this first year was a success but we certainly learned a lot,” said Marissa Woodmansee, JS director. “We are reviewing things that worked and things that didn’t work. Any adjustments we make will be to better serve our youth.
“Like with anything else,” she added, “we couldn’t predict every possible scenario. But at the end of the day, we want young people to have a safe environment to continue their education and recognize the importance of a high school diploma.”
Day School is a service offered to youth under JS supervision. For example, when students are referred to JS, they go through an intake process and become a client; they are then under the agency’s supervision.
Of the seven students in the program so far, all were either expelled or suspended from Barton County schools after other avenues to a solution were unsuccessful. The first student arrived in October last year.
“Oftentimes, they have already gone through in-school suspensions,” Woodmansee said. “The reality is these are teenagers at high risk for problems. This is the population we need and want to serve.”
Day School is available from 8 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday. Students use their laptops to check their assignments online and they can email their teachers if they need guidance.
“Some students thought that if they were expelled or suspended, they could sleep in at home and hang out but – surprise - that is not the case. “Parents have told us they appreciate this opportunity,” Woodmansee commented.
Jack Bowman, JS program advocate and Day School supervisor, said he is glad to be part of this alternative resource for students and families.
“Overall, the kids are well-behaved here,” Bowman said. “Occasionally, there are issues that cause a problem but the student is not disrupting others.
“For instance, one student was playing video games on his phone when he should have been working on assignments. But he wasn’t causing a problem for anyone but himself.”
Then there is the other extreme.
“One student was disturbing others and even vandalized property here,” Bowman recalled. “We are pretty patient and will work with students. But there is a limit.”
This student was sent to another educational facility.
“In general, if someone is not cooperative, we talk to the case manager and determine a course of action after that,” Bowman noted.
Bowman’s background includes employment as due process coordinator and safety and security lieutenant at Larned State Hospital. He was one of the first Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) transition employment specialists and earned certification as an offender workforce development specialist.
In addition, Bowman was an instructor for Back to Basics security training for KDOC staff across the state. “I taught courses for youth in anger replacement therapy, life skills and other topics,” he said. “These and other experiences combine to allow me to help young people. Some say I was ‘built for this job’ at Juvenile Services.”
Beginnings
Juvenile Services Day School is the result of an annual report that Woodmansee provided to the Kansas Legislature on behalf of the local Juvenile Corrections Advisory Board.
“We looked at our data and reported on the gaps and barriers to our services,” Woodmansee said. “Not having a Day School was a gap. We asked ourselves: what if students try to get suspended early in the school year simply because they don’t want to go to school.
“We needed another alternative to work with youth and families. All of us appreciate the Legislature and KDOC – JS for supporting us in this effort.”
KDOC-JS awarded a $160,391.19 grant for the Day School, cognitive classes that Bowman also supervises and an upcoming new program.
