Finding the ‘KEYS’ to Success for Kalamazoo Youth

By Joseph L. Thomas, III, Juvenile Services Supervisor
Kalamazoo County Circuit Court

In 2015, the Family Division staff of Kalamazoo County Circuit Court met to discuss ways of improving service delivery, while better meeting the needs of our court-involved youth.  Judges, referees, administrators, managers, and juvenile probation officers identified gaps in the lives of youths resulting in delinquent behavior.  The team created an exciting and innovative program called Kalamazoo Empowering Youth for Success (KEYS) as a potential remedy.  The program targets areas such as gender-specific programming, after-school supervision, vocational readiness and placement, educational and community supports, and improved decision-making skills.

KEYS programming is centrally located within the unsecured area of the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home.  Court-involved youth are transported from their local schools to the juvenile home for after-school programs.  Referrals come from our juvenile probation officers; KEYS provides specialized programs for youth on their caseloads.  Juvenile probation officers are encouraged to be proactive for their clients who could benefit from a community-based intervention.  In addition, juvenile probation officers now have an option besides secure detention for the youth.  Supervisors, managers, and hearing officials can request a juvenile probation officer to submit referrals to KEYS.

The court recognized the need to address the juvenile decision-making and thought processes.  If we can successfully address the negative choices made by local youth, it’s possible it will lead to a reduction in the number of probation violations, detention days, and recidivism.  Positive thinking coupled with positive role modeling will hopefully encourage them to become contributing members and leaders in our community.  Each participant in KEYS receives weekly “Thinking for a Change” group sessions and Social Emotional Learning strategies.  These sessions provide the kids a safe environment to practice and model positive behaviors.

“KEYS has taught me to think before I act and it has taught me that every action has a reaction.  KEYS could benefit others by teaching people social norms and to stop and think about consequences and others’ feelings.”…. A KEYS graduate.

“KEYS also routinely assesses each youth’s Social Emotional Learning skills using the Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA), a nationally standardized tool to monitor and improve youth’s SEL skills (Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Social Management, Personal Responsibility, Goal-Directed Behavior, Decision Making, and Optimistic Thinking).” …. A KYD Network Partner.

Each participant in KEYS receives more than eight hours of programming per week.  The boys and girls attend separately two times a week.  Some community activities involve both groups together, but we discovered performance improved by conducting gender-specific training and events.  The structure of the program is based on a four-phase system, with participants earning points throughout each phase.  A certain amount of points is needed to proceed to the next phase.  The KEYS program is designed to be completed in approximately four months.  Some participants have graduated under the fast-track option based on excellent participation and cooperation, while others remained beyond the four-month period to graduate successfully.

One of the greatest strengths of KEYS has been the collaborative efforts from all involved.  We are very fortunate in Kalamazoo to have the full cooperation of juvenile probation officers, administrators, and hearing officials from the planning stages to the implementation of the program.  We also benefit from a variety of generous community partners providing numerous hours of hands-on teaching, exploration, and activities at no or little cost.  Our 2016 community partnerships included 4H, Girl Scouts, Michigan Works, Alternatives, Planned Parenthood, Cross Fit 269, United Way/ KYD (Kalamazoo Youth Development) Network, Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Open Roads, and music therapy.  

A couple of highlights from our last year involved community outreach experiences.  The first was collaboration with Western Michigan University and the staff from our juvenile home.  The kids constructed plant beds for vegetation and delivered bottle water to residents in Flint.  Secondly, some participants were invited to Derek Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation Leaders Conference in Chicago.  They joined other kids from Kalamazoo and additional states, and made over 160,000 vacuum-packed meals to be disbursed to the homeless.

We are very excited and encouraged by the feedback from program participants.  In this short time since conception, we have experienced a decline in probation violations filed from 2015 to 2016, improvement in academic scores (based on a sample of kids tracked during the fall of 2016), and more job opportunities.  We are steadily assessing, planning, and making enhancements to assure KEYS is valuable and beneficial to our kids we serve in Kalamazoo County. 

Interested in learning more?  Contact me at jlthom@kalcounty.com or 269-385-6000.

For the past two years Joseph L. Thomas III has held the position of juvenile services supervisor with the 9th Circuit Court-Family Division and managed the Kalamazoo Empowering Youth for Success (KEYS) program.  He has worked with the court for more than 21 years as an intake investigator, and moderate, intensive, and juvenile drug treatment court probation officer.  He has also worked as a consultant, facilitator, and presenter, and has published articles with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.  Mr. Thomas received his Bachelor Degree from Western Michigan University in Political Science and Financial Commercial Law in 1995.