Juvenile Probation Department 

2007 Gender Analysis Update

On June 27, 2007, the Juvenile Probation Department provided an update to the Commission on the Status of Women, as reflected in the following Minutes from that meeting:

JUVENILE PROBATION DEPARTMENT UPDATE

Chief William Sifferman, head of the Juvenile Probation Department (JPD), thanked the Commission for its guidance and commitment to ensure services to young girls in the justice system in San Francisco. Currently the JPD recently resurrected the Girls Unit which had disbanded due to lack of funding. Chief Sifferman explained that Chicago has implemented "Project Renew," a nationally recognized program which has developed a blue print for providing gender specific services. Chief Sifferman hopes to have the Girls Unit up and running by the fall. Chief Sifferman invited Commissioners to attend a meeting with members of the Chicago Juvenile Probation Department on July 16th at City Hall in Room 201.

For FY07-08, there will be 3 new Probation Officers dedicated to the Girls Unit. He also emphasized the importance of providing gender specific training to JPD staff to ensure that the needs of girls are met. Currently, the JPD has 2 senior staff members who are women, Nancy Yalon and Allison Magee, and Toni Powell is currently director of Log Cabin Ranch.

In terms of supportive services, there is a commitment by Walden House to dedicate 10 beds for young women to facilitate a treatment plan after they leave the juvenile justice system. Regarding young mothers involved in the system, the Center for Young Women's Development established the "Bill of Rights for Incarcerated Mothers" and, in May, held a press conference to review and re-emphasize the importance of the "Bill of Rights".

Recently the JPD arranged a staff development exercise, bringing together women in city leadership and the executive staff of the JPD to discuss collaborations within and across departments and agencies. Thanks to a grant from the Zellerbach Family Foundation, the JPD hopes to have additional meetings to bring together different leaders and innovative ways to improve the JPD and provide gender specific services.

Commissioner Shorter thanked Chief Sifferman for his dedication to the implementation of CEDAW, stating that it is great to know that San Francisco is the first city to implement CEDAW especially in such a large department as the JPD. Dr. Murase emphasized the importance of collaborations by service provides and the JPD to ensure that girls in the Juvenile Justice system receive the assistance and guidance they need.