Juvenile Re-entry Systems Effort (JReS), is a program that works with students with disabilities that are in correctional facilities, helping them to safely reenter back into the community.
JReS was first started in 2021. This program has assigned facilities around the state, such as Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, where the youth are placed. These youth get help when they enter this facility and up to a year after being placed.
Mary Jackson, the Assistant Bureau Chief of Transition, is one of the front runners of the program, to better help the youth of Iowa.
Jackson recently assisted Division of Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning (CJJP) in hiring two new staff for this program, one of them being Alison Roe, a new hire that started in February 2022.
“I am able to incorporate my education and experiences working in youth development and vocational services into one role. I especially enjoy assisting youth in determining what they want their lives to look like after placement,” Roe said.
Roe says that she has really enjoyed being a part of this program as it is just getting started and working with the JReS partners to help develop a framework that expands throughout the state.
Written by Courtney Jackson