An Interagency Collaboration Strategy for Linking Schools with Social and Criminal Justice Services

Abstract

Schools have been called on to do much more than provide an education to students who must confront difficult personal and family circumstances and unsafe neighborhoods. This article describes a system partnership program model in which schools, social services agencies, and criminal justice agencies, working within a target neighborhood, collaborate to serve high-risk young adolescents. The model includes weekly “colocation” meetings—a services integration strategy that promotes joint planning and shared decision making—and allows the collaborating organizations to bridge traditional organizational and professional boundaries such as confidentiality requirements, categorical services, and divergent professional viewpoints. The program results in a closely coordinated response by school, social services, and criminal-juvenile justice systems that fosters improved access to services, maximizes existing resources, generates new services for the school and community, and acts as a support for school and collaborating agency personnel.