Tom Green County commissioners approved a letter of support for a grant application to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department on Wednesday, aimed at creating a new Juvenile Assessment Center within Tom Green County.
Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Monica Schniers provided an overview of the proposal during the meeting.
“Last year, about this time, Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSE) came in and did a workshop with community partners in order to identify gaps in services for kids with behavioral health issues–mental health, mental illness, and substance use disorder.
“Right now, many of those kids go to MHMR, but many of them also end up with us, and we really don’t have the services for those–plus, they don’t need to be in the juvenile system in order to get services. The center would be used to assess those kids that come in contact with either law enforcement or the schools, primarily, and then they could be assessed to determine the best treatment for those kids, not just automatically sent to us.”
This center is intended to fill current service gaps by providing evaluation and referral services for youth with behavioral health needs, especially those identified by law enforcement or school officials, without defaulting to detention or probation.
The grant application is due today, and Schniers said the project is ready for funding, a site location, and staffing. She indicated that MHMR of the Concho Valley would facilitate operations at the center.
Committee members supporting the project—including representatives from MHMR, the juvenile probation department, the district attorney’s office, and West Texas Counseling and Guidance—were in attendance.
Greg Rowe, CEO of MHMR Concho Valley, addressed the court, stating, “This is to try and divert kids from the justice system and getting them into the right services and right support.”
Once operational, the assessment center would be staffed initially by three people: an assessment coordinator, a counselor, and a case manager.
Speaking of the longer-term impact, Tom Green County Judge Carter added: “if you start early…you’re going to save them, primarily, and make sure that they don’t fall into the system. That’s the last thing we want to do.”
The assessment center concept builds on existing county juvenile justice infrastructure, which includes a 25-bed secure facility for pre?adjudication youth in San Angelo. The Tom Green County Juvenile Justice Center operates under the Sheriff’s Office, provides education services via San Angelo ISD, and contracts with other counties for overflow detention services, with average costs per day ranging from $120 to $280 when placements outside the county are necessary.
The county also hosts the Education Supervision and Prevention (ESP) program, initiated in 1995, which places juvenile probation officers in middle schools to prevent youth from entering the justice system and has a reported success rate of 85%.
