Agencies
Services
Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice
County juvenile detention centers do NOT fall under the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice. LEARN MORE
Construction on the new Monarch Youth Center in Lincoln, IL. The center is expected to open in the spring of 2025, but before the doors can open, IDJJ is holding job screenings. The next screening for Juvenile Justice Specialists will be on August 19 and 20. See the flyer below for more info or visit the Careers page.
New Children's Behavioral & Mental Health Portal
BEACON is a new centralized resource for Illinois youth and families seeking services for behavioral health needs. It’s common for young people to struggle with behavioral and/or mental health challenges. Please know you are not alone, and neither is your child. We are here to help. Visit beacon.illinois.gov.
Upcoming Employment Screenings
Open positions (except Juvenile Justice Specialist positions) are posted frequently on the Illinois jobs website.
Types of positions often posted include licensed educators, leisure time activities specialists, dietary workers, human resources roles, finance positions, and more.
Mission
The mission of the Illinois Dept. of Juvenile Justice is to build youth skills and strengthen families to promote community safety and positive youth outcomes.
Transformation
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice is transitioning to a new, evidence-based model designed to reduce the harm of incarceration. To learn more about the changes coming to IDJJ, visit our Transformation page.
IDJJ Director Mueller and her team presented an update on the Transformation on Nov. 1, 2023.
Barbara Allen-Hagen 2023 Award Recipient
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ) announced August 21st that the Illinois Youth Center (IYC) Pere Marquette in Grafton was awarded the 2023 PbS Barbara Allen-Hagen (BAH) Award. The BAH award is a national award presented annually to one juvenile corrections facility and one juvenile detention facility. BAH recipients must show exceptional progress in their achievement of a self-identified area of growth.
This year’s BAH Award for a corrections facility was presented to IYC Pere Marquette for their exemplary work in connecting families with their youth who are currently under the care of IDJJ. Officials from IDJJ accepted the award at the Performance based Standards (PbS) awards gala held in Philadelphia on August 11, 2023. READ MORE
The PbS Barbara Allen-Hagen Award was established in 2007 to honor Barbara Allen-Hagen and her retirement from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The award is given annually to one correction, detention/assessment and community residential program that "best exemplifies PbS’ commitment to treating all youths as one of our own and used the PbS improvement model to achieve positive outcomes for youths, staff and families."
IDJJ's Pere Marquette facility was selected as the 2023 winner of the award for work in family engagement. (see above)
IDJJ's Warrenville facility was selected as the 2021 winner of the award for comprehensive work to implement best practices to ensure the facility is a safe and healthy environment for youths and staff.
DJJ School District #428 Educator Receives Award of Meritorious Service from the Illinois State Board of Education
IDJJ School District #428 teacher Beverly Singleton was recently honored with an Award of Meritorious Service at the Illinois State Board of Education's annual Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Banquet . She is pictured with Dr. Tony Sanders, State Superintendent of Education. The awards banquet celebrates the exemplary Illinois educators who go above and beyond to make positive impacts in their school communities.
Ms. Singleton teaches Career & Technical Education at IDJJ's Phoenix Emerging Adult Career & Education (PEACE) Center at St. Charles. She first came to IDJJ in 2018 to help youth work toward earning their GED. Her background in banking and commercial lending, however, has given her a passion for teaching youth about finances and fiscal responsibility, which is a big part of her work with the youth today. She also teaches career exploration courses, helping youth begin to plan career paths that will contribute to a more successful future.
Congratulations, Ms. Singleton! Thanks for all you do for our youth!
Community Partners
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice is grateful to the many wonderful community partner organizations and individuals that provide educational, recreational and therapeutic services and opportunities to our youth. The below organizations provide services such as art therapy, restorative justice programs, literacy training, mentoring, tutoring, animal therapy, violence prevention, vocational training, musical theater, peer mentoring, substance abuse prevention, oral communication skills, recreational and athletic activities, higher education opportunities, and more. Click on the logos to learn more about our community partners.
*Partner organizations are still being updated. Email dominique.newman@illinois.gov if your organization is missing from this list.
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