Donated flowers brighten Willoughby House
- Written by Barbara Kessler
By Y. Denise Caldwell, Community Resource Coordinator, Northern District
Blossoms abound at Willoughby House since the students, led by volunteer Cassie Green, spruced up the flowerbeds in front of the house and in the backyard.
According to Green, they had to plant the flowers before it got too hot.
“If it’s too hot the flowers will burn up,” she said.
Green took the lead on this project again this year, ensuring that the flowers would bloom once more. She donated personal funds and time to this project. She also received generous donations from the McFadden Community Advisory Council and longtime volunteer Bridget Marchetta to buy the necessary supplies, which she delivered to the halfway house. (The McFadden council has turned its attention to Willoughby since McFadden House closed this spring.)
The donated items included hardwood bark mulch, petunias, hydrangeas, azaleas, iris, lavender, jalapeno, sweet mint other colorful flowers and various herbs.
All of their hard work will pay off, Green said, because “the front landscaping will come back year after year and grow to be really beautiful and full.”
Green said she plans to do even more next year to beautify the grounds.
Staff and students were especially pleased with the finished results. “It looks a whole lot better,” Green said proudly.
Kelli Hall of Mart has a big job that looks deceptively simple -- she makes sure 'everybody is safe'
- Written by Barbara Kessler
We hope you’ve enjoyed meeting a small cross-section of TJJD’s many dedicated staff members during this National Correctional Officers Week. We wrap up today with a spotlight on Youth De
velopment Coach Kelli Hall of the Mart campus.
velopment Coach Kelli Hall of the Mart campus. Kelli Hall
Campus Shift Administrator, Mart campus
When asked to describe her job as the morning Campus Shift Administrator at the McLennan County State Juvenile Correctional Facility, in Mart, Kelli Hall keeps it simple. “I make sure the campus is covered as far as staff goes. If there are incidents of any kind, I respond to them and report them. My main job is to make sure that the campus is running smoothly every day. I make sure everybody stays safe.”
Hall graduated with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Purdue University after growing up in small-town Texas and is in her third year working for TJJD. She hopes to eventually earn her Ph.D. in psychology and use that to work within the correctional system to help staff members process the things they experience on the job.
She says the best part of her role is seeing the kids get to go home. “All of us want to make sure that the kids can go home in a timely manner and that they go home safe. A lot of people overlook that aspect of corrections, but somebody has to be there to make sure that everybody gets to go home.”
That comes with a lot of challenges, and though Hall makes it look easy day in and day out, there is one thing she would change if she could. “I wish the public understood the depths of the job and the work that’s being done here,” she says. “There are a lot of misconceptions about correctional officers. It can be a very hard job and a very stressful job. I think it can be a very underappreciated job—but it’s a great job.”
- John McGreevy, TJJD Communications
Michelle Hawkins embraces her role as a problem solver for youth at Gainesville State School
- Written by Barbara Kessler
Today we're spotlighting Michelle Hawkins of the Gainesville State School, in our continuing shout out to TJJD staff during National Correctional Officers Week 2021.
Michelle Hawkins
Supervisor IIP Dorm, Gainesville State School
As the Supervisor of the Intensive Intervention Program (IIP) dorm at Gainesville State School, Michelle Hawkins works with youth who are having the most difficulty getting along with others.
And she loves it.
That’s because Hawkins sees these kids who’ve been acting out toward others as simply needing extra care and close attention, and after 16 years working in juvenile corrections she feels well equipped to help.
“I have a good way with kids and I can talk them down sometimes,” she said. “You can say I’m the mediator.”
Hawkins, a native of Mexia who attended East Texas Baptist University and has four kids of her own, believes there’s a teachable moment in almost any situation and she finds it tremendously rewarding to help young people see it.
Every day at the IIP dorm, Hawkins works closely with staff and youth, collaborating on concrete steps the young men can take to regulate their emotions, stay cool and think through challenges. The coaches continuously engage with the youth, creating activities to teach coping skills and practice positive behaviors. For example, they recently play-acted appropriate dating behaviors, such as pulling out a chair for a date and asking about that person’s needs.
All this is possible because reforms underway at TJJD have created a kinder, calmer, trauma-informed environment, Hawkins said. She considers the reforms, collectively called the Texas Model, to be the best thing to happen at the agency since she joined the Texas Youth Commission in 2005 as a Juvenile Correctional Officer (JCO).
“It’s a great change, it’s more about seeing the problem behind the behavior. It makes you look at situations and incidents totally differently,” she said. “Whereas when I first started it was all about enforcement. We didn’t say to youth, ‘Why are you feeling this way?’”
Asking that key question – and following the Model’s guidance to “See the Need Behind the Behavior” – makes a world of sense to Hawkins. With these concepts front of mind, staff are considering a young person’s background and motivations, enabling them to better assist that child as they strive to improve their behavior.
“It’s less of a battle over who’s right and who’s wrong,” Hawkins said. “It’s more about compromising and problem solving . . . and it works!” She and her colleagues can see it working bit by bit, day by day, and their greatest joy is when youth complete their individual plans at the IIP dorm and return to their regular dorms more emotionally resilient and able to deal with life’s ups and downs.
“I think I’m doing a good deed for the world, and also for that kid who’s benefiting from it.”
- Barbara Kessler, Communications
RJ Coach James Ferguson is glad to be making a difference in young lives
- Written by Barbara Kessler
Meet James Ferguson, a Youth Development Coach at the Ron Jackson campus. We’re featuring him today as part of our continuing recognition of National Correctional Officers W
eek.
eek.James Ferguson
Youth Development Coach
Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex
He recently participated in the Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) practitioner training, a program designed to meet the complex needs of children who have experienced adversity, early harm, toxic stress or other trauma. And while he knew the course would be helpful for him on the job, he also finds that the skills he has learned very much apply to another important part of his life: being a better father to his two-year-old son.
“Using the tools I’ve been given here at work is going to help me with my family life,” he says. “I’m better able to be there for my son and support him in the ways I need to.”
Ferguson first joined TJJD in 2012. Then, after two-year stint in Colorado, he rejoined the agency in 2019. In the relatively short time he was away, he was pleasantly surprised by some of the differences that had taken place, most notably by the implementation of the Texas Model.
“I think there are good things involved with the Texas Model,” he says. “When it first rolled out, I was kind of skeptical, and I wasn’t alone. But giving us the ability to connect with these kids instead of mainly focusing on corrections, and allowing us to come in and coach them and build these better connections with them compared to the previous program is a nice change.”
It’s an approach he hopes the people of Texas will understand. “There’s a big misconception out there about what we do, and I want people to know that we are focused on rehabilitation with trauma-informed care.”
When asked what keeps him coming to work every day, he says he’s always enjoyed working with young people. “It’s nice to come in and try to help make a difference in their lives. They’ve been through a lot of hard things. We’re trying to connect with them and build trust. If I can do that, I’ll know I’ve made a difference.”
- John McGreevy, TJJD Communications
Ashly Mays happened on a career that was tough at first, but so rewarding
- Written by Barbara Kessler
Today, we're spotlighting Ashly Mays of Giddings State School, as we recognize the hard work of TJJD direct care staff during National Correctional Officers Week (May 2-8).
Ashly Mays
Campus Shift Administrator, Giddings State School
Ashly Mays has seen it all during her 12 years with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. She had been working at a grocery store in Giddings when a regular customer--who just happened to be a TJJD employee--recruited her. Though she didn’t have a background in working with youth, she was intrigued by the challenge--and the opportunity.
She started in a role the agency now calls Youth Development Coach, an essential position that interacts directly with the youth each and every day: managing their schedules, keeping them safe, providing guidance, and often lending a sympathetic ear. “I’m not going to sugar-coat it--it was a difficult job,” Mays says. “But the work is so rewarding. The support I received from the veteran staff was so important to my understanding of how to connect with the youth and how to handle different situations. When you build a rapport with the youth, that’s when they respect you.”
Fast forward more than a decade: she now reports directly to the superintendent and is responsible for the smooth operation of the entire campus during her shift, placing a priority on the safety of the youth and staff. And nothing is more important to her than making sure the new staff have the kind of mentoring she did.
“When you work with the same kids each day and you see their progress, that’s what makes this job rewarding,” she says. “I can’t tell you how it feels to see that whole process. When a youth is ready to leave campus and you know that you’ve had a positive impact, it’s a huge accomplishment for them—but for you too.”
As part of her current duties, Mays checks in with the youth on each dorm. Not surprisingly, that’s her favorite part of the job. “It’s the highlight of my day,” she says. “The kids know that I’m here if they need to talk. I want them to know that we’re going to ask, ‘Are you doing good? Are you okay today?’”
While work keeps Mays busy, she also makes sure she is there for the most important kids in her life: her three sons. “The days are definitely busy,” she says, “and my boys stay very active. We love to play basketball, and when it’s time to relax, we watch movies together.”
But her life will soon be getting even busier. Mays is finishing her bachelor’s degree this December and has already set her sights on her next accomplishment: earning a master’s degree in criminal justice. “There’s always more to learn,” she says, “and there’s always a new way to make an impact.”
- Brian Sweany, Communications
