RSSLibrary services to incarcerated teens
Nov 04
From Our Guest Bloggers, Programs of Interest Brooklyn Public Library, Juvenile Detention Centers, Literacy, New York City Department of Education 3 Comments
Hi everyone! My name is Lisa Goldstein, and I’m November’s guest blogger. This month I will be writing about some of the work I have done with incarcerated teens. I hope this will serve as an effective lead-up to December’s Biblioball, which will raise funds to buy books for this population.
I have been working for the Brooklyn Public Library since 2002, first as a librarian trainee while I got my MLS, and then as a young adult librarian. A few years ago I began working in a cluster of branches in the Brownsville and East New York sections of Brooklyn. A few blocks away from the Brownsville branch is the Crossroads Juvenile Center, a detention center for youth, operated by the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Most youth detention facilities in NYC are non-secure. These non-secure sites function as group homes. The residents are not on lockdown, wear street clothes, and can leave the site on supervised trips.
Crossroads is one of three secure youth detention sites in NYC. The other two are in the Bronx: Horizon, and Bridges, which serves as an intake center. In these facilities, detainees wear uniforms, are on lockdown, and do not leave the site.
Crossroads’s population maxes out at about 125 kids. Not counting the infirmary and intake areas, there are eight main halls which at full capacity each house sixteen kids. One of these halls is for females, and the rest are for males. Most residents are about fifteen or sixteen years old.
My introduction to Crossroads came from the Department of Education. The DOE operates Passages Academy, which provides education for youth in detention. Jessica Fenster-Sparber is the library coordinator for Passages Academy. When I met her two years ago, she was traveling between seven Passages sites throughout NYC in an effort to bring library services to them. Jessica helped me set up a number of visits to English classes at Crossroads, and books I brought got an enthusiastic response.
I hate that I always end up making this awful pun when discussing this outreach, but the teens at Crossroads are really a classic “captive” audience. With no access to cell phones, the internet, or friends, and limited access to their family, they simply don’t have much to keep them occupied. Books can fill that void, and can also help alleviate any anxiety, depression or boredom they may experience while in detention.
However, there is a rule that prohibits the detainees from bringing any materials from the school floor to their halls. So while the books were great for independent reading in class, they couldn’t be used for recreational reading after school.
Once school ended for the year, my visits to classes stopped. But the kids were still there. So, with the help of DJJ staff, I began to visit them on their halls, distributing books to them there. My colleague Vani began to come with me, and we quickly worked out a system that enabled us to visit each hall twice a month. Some kids stay at Crossroads for months, but most do not stay for more than two to four weeks. Because of this high turnover, as well as the residents’ healthy reading habits, we had to visit frequently. Once a month would not be enough. After over a year of consistent service, the kids and staff at Crossroads have come to accept this as a normal, even essential, service.
Next week I’ll write a bit about the Crossroads residents’ reading tastes, as well as the excellent library that the Passages staff has created at Crossroads.
Nov 05, 2009 @ 12:08:38
Thanks for this post. The service you’re providing is so important. It’s heartbreaking to think of kids being so disenfranchised and isolated. Keep up the great work!
Dec 16, 2011 @ 15:37:57
Hello. I am currently enrolled in a Contemporary Urbam Education Class. I have chosen the topic Education in the Juvenile Dention Centers. Is it possible that I can ask you a few questions on the education system? It is so difficult contacting an educator. Thanks.
Feb 21, 2012 @ 13:16:28
Hi Elaine,
So sorry to respond so late. Of course you can contact me – l.goldstein@brooklynpubliclibrary.org.
I hope it’s not too late to help with your class.
Lisa