Program in Loudoun County, Virginia Reduces Recidivism in Teens

For over a decade now the Loudoun County, Virginia, School Based Probation (SBP) program has worked to reduce recidivism in teens and made impressive gains in combatting the school-to-prison pipeline. Since the program was instituted in the 2002-2003 school year, SBP has provided “a safety net to those students who might be tempted, through peer pressure or otherwise, to fall into delinquency patterns.”
It’s working. As a direct result of this program, Loudoun has seen its juvenile crime and discipline incidents fall dramatically while its school population has grown.
SBP’s data shows that having a probation officer at school improves attendance, academic performance and student behavior. In addition, SBP reduces recidivism, which lends to a safer school environment and community-at-large.
Keeping teens out of the juvenile justice system isn’t the program’s only goal though. According to an SBP brief,

While recidivism rates for court-involved youth are target, a child with an improved attendance record will perform better academically, and overall behavior in school and the community will improve as well. Truancy often leads to delinquent behavior for many youth. The school based probation officer monitors attendance on a daily basis. The communication gaps between schools and Probation Officers have been greatly reduced.

For more on the Loudoun County School Based Probation, download the PDF >>
For more on the school-to-prison pipeline, see our past reporting >>

David Backes writes the Friday news roundup for Reclaiming Futures and contributes articles about juvenile justice reform and adolescent substance abuse treatment to ReclaimingFutures.org. He has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Santa Clara University. David works as an account executive for Prichard Communications.