New literacy program aims to keep Juveniles on Orange and Osceola County out of detention centers
State Attorney Andrew Bain said a new program called Turning Pages will help juveniles in the justice system look at changing directions away from a life of crime.
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The program which launched earlier this year, works to address literacy issues among at-risk youth in Orange and Osceola counties.
The Literacy Project Foundation found three out of five people in U.S. prisons cannot read and 85% of all juveniles who interface with the juvenile system are functionally illiterate.
“This is an opportunity to work with youth in the juvenile justice system to try and end the school-to-prison pipeline we know exists,” said Andrew Bain, Orange, and Osceola Ninth Judicial Circuit State Attorney.
Bain created “Turning Pages” in partnership with the University of Central Florida’s Communication Disorders Clinic and Carrie Loughran, UCF clinical instructor and creator and director of the iRead Program.
Through a partnership with the non-profit organization AMIkids, which works with juvenile offenders, the juveniles are given the opportunity to participate in the literacy program and work with UCF graduate student clinicians, they learn youth reading, writing, spelling, and comprehension skills.
In April, the first group of five students completed the 12-week intensive program. One student named Eugene Johnson said the program taught him more than just reading and comprehension, but also life skills.
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“I live in my future. And my presence, and I’m worrying about what’s in front of me than what’s behind me,” said Johnson.
Johnson who’s 17, is an AMIkids student after he ended up in the juvenile justice system and was put on probation for an argument that escalated into a fight at his former high school.
“I like myself now, then when I did then. Because I could have better ended it another way instead of the way I retaliated,” said Johnson.
Johnson said at first, he wasn’t sure about the program but halfway through, he learned it was more about becoming a better person and changing his perception of education.
“At first, I thought it wasn’t going to be right for me, but until I saw that I was helping her to help others, I was like,” Yeah, and it was fun as well,” said Johnson.
Johnson is one of five who completed the Turning Pages pilot program and said he recommends it to those who want to change their lives but also take education to the next level.
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“Give it a shot. Because you won’t know until you try. You won’t know you like it until you try it,” said Johnson.
“Investing in the literacy and education of our youth is a proactive step towards reducing recidivism and creating a brighter future for our community,” said Bain.
Bain said the program which costs roughly $2,500 per child is two hours a session with two sessions a week for twelve weeks.
Bain said the program hits close to home because when he was a child, he struggled with literacy in third and fourth grade. He said due to the lack of movement in his right eye, he couldn’t track the words in books.
Through the same type of training Turning Pages will offer, he was able to overcome the obstacles.
“If not for the same type of training and advocated that my parents were able to mustard up for me, I would have probably not succeeded in the way that I did going forward, and I most likely would have ended up in the criminal justice system.
Juveniles must have a case with the office and agree to be in the program. He hopes to offer the program to more youth in the juvenile justice system in the fall.
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