By Gabriela Gonzalez
ggonzalez@VenturaCountyStar.com
March 27, 2007
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard and Port Hueneme officially opened the first club inside the Ventura County Juvenile Justice complex on Monday.
The new club inside the complex on Vineyard Avenue is equipped with pool tables, bass drums and video games bringing color to the correctional facility, aiming to build positive relationships among youths.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard and Port Hueneme received a $418,000 grant from the state and $90,000 from Boys & Girls Clubs of America to open the club, said Tim Blaylock, the chief professional officer of the local clubs.
The partnership is part of an a initiative — Targeted Re-entry — funded by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the U.S. Department of Justice, the state of California and the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The initiative is designed to provide opportunities for youths who are serving 90 days or less to easily reenter their communities upon leaving the justice system. This is the fifth club inside a juvenile correctional facility in the nation. Others are in Minnesota, Nevada, Arkansas and Texas.
"We are trying to advocate to go back into their schools; we are going to encourage them to go get their GED," Blaylock said, referring to the general equivalency diploma. Youths will also receive counseling and rehabilitation services. About 95 percent of the youths in the facility are detained because of drugs or alcohol issues. He said the program will serve about 50 girls and boys this year.
Another goal is to offer resources to the youths once they are out in their community, Blaylock said. The club will provide "job ready programs" that teach youths how to write résumés and cover letters, how to apply for jobs and prepare for job interviews.
Some of the kids bond very quickly with one another when they interact in the new club, said Carlos Soto, the club's case manager. Soto has been working with the juveniles since the facility opened in January.
The club will also provide a mentor program.
"Anytime you have mentors, that's the biggest thing. We hope to work with the family and the youth together," Blaylock said. "They still have hope, and they just need the opportunity to be helped."
The youths will continue in the program up to one year after leaving the facility.
"Most of the kids here don't have good adult support in their community, and they need assistance and guidance to help them to move in a productive adult life," said Cathy Back, who works with the youths through the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a private organization helping to improve the lives of disadvantage kids in the nation.
"A lot of them have been victims of violence, sexual abuse, neglect. Many of them don't have a safe home," Back said. "They need help with job skills, with basic decision making, and they need some sense of permanence."
Robert Gambala, director of Delinquency Prevention with the local club, said the youths will have options when they return to their communities.
"When they leave this facility, they are going to have an action plan," Gambala said. "We want to build their strengths in a relaxed, and safe environment."
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