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“The New York State juvenile justice system has made measurable and significant improvements in community safety, coordination, data-driven decision-making, and outcomes for youth ages 7 to 15. Learn how the collective impact approach was used to transform the system in just a few short years.

Top Takeaways

1. Collective impact was used to successfully transform New York State’s juvenile justice system, a highly complex network of public and private agencies, non-profit organizations, and courts with a history of ineffectiveness (e.g., annual placement costs were among the highest in the nation, 60% of youth were rearrested within two years of release).
2. The system was transformed through the establishment of a backbone infrastructure, a common agenda, shared measured systems, mutually reinforcing activities, and continuous communication.
3. System transformation with the collective impact approach enabled measurable and significant improvements for youths and communities: juvenile arrests decreased by 24%, juvenile admissions to state placement decreased by 28%, and the number of youth in state custody declined by 45%. These significant drops in numbers of youth across the system have not led to any increase in crime or risk to public safety.”