The purpose of this club or organization shall be to educate students on campus about prevalent issues happening with troubled youth or in the juvenile justice system. The Juvenile Justice Club will encourage students to have a voice about these issues that are happening with our youth today and have the knowledge, skills, and confidence in discussions on different ways to make society a better place for young individuals entering our criminal justice system today. This club wants to spread awareness of how children are not adults and how crime prevention is different when dealing with juveniles than adults. Through informative and engaging weekly meetings, friendship building activities, inviting influential guest speakers, and hosting events that link to these issues in today’s society, the Juvenile Justice Club will accomplish this throughout the years.
Throughout the semester, we plan to host different events that invite guest speakers through an online platform, utilizing meetings to enhance our knowledge of trauma, youth development, and the many systems youth are involved with, including the Department of Children and Families, Department of Corrections. In addition, we plan to learn about additional case studies through various online mechanisms such as Kahoot and Netflix’s party and even taking the club a virtual tour of a juvenile facility with the help from our advisor Bill Carbone. Before COVID-19 happened, the Juvenile Justice Club would host two events on campus to spread awareness on campus about the specific issues that juvenile’s face in their daily lives, especially while incarcerated. Jerry Martinez, a founder of a mentoring non-profit, was detained at Manson Youth Institute and was going to tell us about his experiences in the Department of Corrections. Also, Nicole Kowal, who is a Court Planner for the Connecticut Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division, was going to train many students on campus about LGBTQ+ youth and how to treat them accurately in the system.
Madison Rodrigues, Executive Assistant
Senior, Criminal Justice student with a concentration in Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention
Catherine Parafati, Sergeant at Arms
Senior, Criminal Justice major with a concentration in Crime Analysis with a minor in Sociology
Tailyn Gonsalves, Vice President
Junior, Criminal Justice student with a concentration on Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention
Jennifer Vozzo, President
Senior, Criminal Justice student with a concentration in Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention
In the Spring of 2019, the Juvenile Justice Club was created at the University of New Haven through the work of Tow Youth Justice Institute Intern Richard Concepcion. The club’s purpose is to educate students on campus about the prevalent issues currently happening with youth in the juvenile justice system. They encourage students to use their voice to share the issues that are happening with our youth and give students the resources to actively engage in discussions about ways we can make society a better and safer place for young individuals. This Fall, they held their first campus event, a Juvenile Justice Career Panel.
