Painting walls, laying tile and planting flowers are more than home repairs, according to Reggie Hill, mentor and volunteer instructor for “Home Repairs Made Easy,” the 2018 State Volunteer Reso
Source Council 2018 grant awarded to Willoughby House.
“It needs a better name,” he said about his program, which teaches youth about flooring, painting and landscaping.
“They’re learning construction, commercial property repair skills,” Hill said.
Youth who complete the 12-week program, taught in 4-week long sessions, can earn three Certificates of Completion for Commercial Repairs 101 (in flooring, painting or landscaping or all three).
They’ve learned to install tiles, wood and carpet flooring using measuring tapes. Their math skills have improved as well, as they have to figure how much material to get for each room and take other measurements.
The painting classes consist of learning not only how much paint to buy but which paint and paint brush is best for the job.
Landscaping focuses on Texas plants and which is best for the weather and the soil.
To date, 10 youth have completed at least one of the sessions, including CL, JG, LH, JH, HS, DD, JB, DC, CM, and WF.
They are excited about learning new skills and hope to pursue similar professions when they’re released.
Youth from Ayres Halfway House in San Antonio participated in an exciting event on April 12. Pam Colaw, the Director of Hidden Springs Youth Ranch, brought two of her cowboy ropers to teach our youth how to rope steers.
The cowboys spent the evening teaching the techniques of roping. Our youth really enjoyed this event and have been invited to tour her ranch and ride the 10 therapy horses there sometime soon.
Young men at Schaeffer House acquired a special mascot this year, whom they’ve grown to adore. He’s cuddly and perky -- and unlike some mascots, his fur suit is no cheap imitation!
Cody is Schaeffer's canine charm. Make that charmer. The wrinkly little Pug made his first visit to Schaeffer House last December when he was still wobbly on his feet and not yet 3 months old, says TJJD Parole Officer Lori Calderon.
“I just saw the faces of the kids. These kids, even some who they were having issues with, they just went crazy over a puppy. Their looks. They just became kids again,” Calderon said.
That prompted her son, Zackery, Cody’s owner, to propose that Cody serve as a comfort dog at Schaeffer House. Making Cody a goodwill emissary seemed natural to Zackery, 24, who'd grown up watching his mom help people in crisis or transition during her employment at Child Protective Services.
“He’s always had a heart to help others,” Calderon said.
She asked for and received approval for Cody to be a part-time house dog at Schaeffer House. The pug reported for “work” in February. He visits twice a week and checks in with his own ID.
Cody hangs out in the day room and classroom, and the dozen or so youth in residence help with his care. “He’s been great with both staff and the kids. He has so much personality,” said Calderon, who offices in Schaeffer House and can keep tabs on Cody during the day.
Most of the young men are excited about the pup’s twice-weekly appearances. One, who’s since moved out of Schaeffer, bonded with Cody so strongly that he looks for him when he comes back on parole checks, she said. There have been youth who acted initially like they were unmoved or even put off by the dog, but she recalls that two of those boys were soon taking Cody out on his leash and cleaning up after him (Cody being, ahem, still in training).
“It changed them,” she said. “Cody would go to them unconditionally.”
Another problem (but not really) arose when Cody became enamored of door stops. Though a wee 12-pounder, the big-eyed cutie can wrest a doorstop from its door and zip across the room with it before anyone can catch him, Calderon says, chuckling.
“I’ve been told by several people, he has a unique character.”
Life inside a secure juvenile justice facility is vastly different from the fluid routines in the outside world.
Young men and women sentenced to time in Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD) secure facilities follow a strict daily schedule of mandated treatments, group therapy and recreation as well as voluntary community service events – all aimed at moving them toward improved mental health and pro-social behavior.
But a big slice of the day mirrors the world at large. Like their peers outside, TJJD’s youthful offenders spend weekdays in school.
For some of these young people, it’s been a while since they regularly attended classes. By the time they arrive at TJJD, the majority are behind by at least one grade-level and have difficulty reading.
Various factors disrupted schooling -- learning disabilities, physical abuse, sexual exploitation, gang involvement -- and of course, the criminal activity than landed them in the juvenile justice system.
Many TJJD youth lacked the family stability that would have helped them stick with school. About 64 percent of TJJD youth have a household member who has been incarcerated, according to 2018 statistics on trauma factors impacting those in custody at TJJD.
The Lone Star High Schools housed at the agency’s five secure facilities give these young people a chance to catch up; time to press re-set and refocus on academics.
Not all of the students will take the opportunity. Not all will succeed.
Some will soar.
One recent graduate of the high school at the McLennan County State Juvenile Correctional Facility at Mart was inducted into the honor society Phi Theta Kappa at Navarro College in Corsicana this past fall.
Another youth, recently built on the high school diploma he earned at the Gainesville State School in 2017 by becoming a phlebotomist and finding a well-paying job in this needed medical field.
Yet another parlayed the welding certification he earned at TJJD – followed by an oil career certification earned while on parole -- into a job as a warehouse foreman in Houston, where he also studies finance at Houston Community College.
“I thought I was going to be behind when I left (TJJD). But I’m not, I’m ahead,” said the Navarro honor student, explaining that his time at McLennan had been a respite from his troubled Houston neighborhood where he lost a family member in a fatal shooting and then went astray of the law himself.
At McLennan, he’d resumed his studies earnestly, resolving to start achieving. He left the facility with 22 college credit hours.
“School has always been a major part of my life. Teachers, principals, they looked out for me,” he said, referring to those at his home school and at McLennan.
CELEBRATING
Success looks a little different for each individual. Some leave TJJD with college credits, thanks to online programs. Others find victory in securing that high school diploma or high school equivalency degree they thought was out of reach.
Twice each year, In the spring and the fall, the six Lone Star schools at the secure TJJD facilities celebrate these achievements. Other smaller schools set up at TJJD halfway houses also recognize graduates in varied ways.
At the large secure facilities, school staff arrange full graduation ceremonies, replete with caps and gowns, commencement speakers, recognized valedictorians and an teary audience of proud parents and staff.
“A lot of our students, they haven’t had many successes in their life,” said Luther Taliaferro, superintendent of education for TJJD. “This is our way of saying ‘Great job!’ And their parents come and watch.”
The celebration means a lot to the youth, because often they are the first, or among the few, in their families to receive a diploma, said Dennis Smith, longtime principal of the Lone Star High School Southeast at the Giddings State School.
“The ceremonies are just very special,” he said, recalling how he was moved to witness his first TJJD graduation 20 years ago. Knowing it’s important to families, Smith has made sure the graduates are well feted and photographed, (a task that typically enlists other Giddings students enrolled in the commercial photography program).
THE TALLY
In the first half of 2018 (through June 21), 69 TJJD youth in the secure facilities earned their high school diploma or Certificate of High School Equivalency (CHSE).**
In addition, the schools handed out 253 industry certifications for the same time period.
Some youth were awarded multiple certifications, many with direct application in the job market. These include courses recognized by the American Welding Society, Texas Nursery & Landscape Association and the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER).
Other certifications note work completed in Microsoft Office programs, food safety, telecommunications, automobile air conditioning repair, forklift operation and the Adobe suite of programs, including Photoshop.
All of these accomplishments help build a resume, and for those who fell too far behind to attain a diploma, a certification can be a critical stepping stone toward a job.
It builds confidence, too, said the Navarro student, who also took welding classes while at McLennan.
But the graduations – and now he’s enjoyed two, having received his associate’s degree – are forever memories.
“When I was in, that’s all I could think about, is that I would never get to walk across the stage (at his school at home). I thought I would never get that moment.”
He’s grateful, he says, that he did.
- **A High School Equivalency Degree, also known as a General Education Diploma (GED), shows that the holder has a level of knowledge equivalent to that of a high school graduate. In Texas, the GED diploma awarded is called a Texas Certificate of High School Equivalency (CHSE).
Oil cha
nges, flat tires and dead batteries are just a few of the automotive repairs youth at McFadden are learning how to fix as part of “Car Smart,” a 2018 State Volunteer Resource Council Innovation Grant program.
The funding came from the SVRC but it took the generosity of Tim Miller, owner of Grapevine Motors and a committed volunteer at the halfway house, and Oswaldo “Ozzie” Patino, a certified auto mechanic, to get the program off the ground.
Miller recently delivered a black 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt to the Ranch. “When Mike (Mike Stine President of the McFadden Community Advisory Council) asked if I would donate a car I said yes,” said Miller. “It’s a standard and needs work but it drives. “
The Cobalt, in fact, was not the clunker one might have expected. Staff noticed that the car appeared to still be a nice ride.
Miller replied that “all his cars are nice.” He added that he started working on cars when he was a teenager and that led to Grapevine Motors.
“I didn’t go to college,” he said. “I started working on cars and here I am.”
Miller also is a certified mechanic and he’s willing to help teach the program as well.
Patino will teach up to 40 youth how to change a flat using a floor jack and the safety stand; how to check the fluids – oil, brake, transmission and water; and they’ll learn how to change the headlights, brakes and brake pads and more.
“I wanted to do the class because I want to help the boys learn a skill that they could use when they get back home,” said Patino. “They could maybe get automotive jobs, too.”
The program runs until April 2019 and aligns with the automotive program being taught at the secure facilities.
So far, six young men -- CS, DC, DV, GL, GV and ML -- have received Certificates of Completion and a pair of work gloves for successfully finishing the six week program.