XENIA — The Greene County Board of Commissioners approved an agreement for Xenia Community Schools (XCS) to provide educational services to Greene County Juvenile Detention Center (GCJDC) youth and the Miami Valley Juvenile Rehabilitation Center (MVJRC), which is funded by Ohio Department of Youth Services.
Title I will provide the following services for the Juvenile Court: Classroom teachers as needed based on enrollment; professional development for curriculum and instruction: classroom supplies and equipment to support the supplemental educational services; and three classroom teachers for up to 40 days of summer school, pending availability of Title 1 funds.
Services shall be facilitated through the XCS Curriculum, Instruction & Technology. This shall be done in cooperation with the Juvenile Center. Two classroom teachers, a special education teacher, and a physical education teacher.
“Kids work at their own pace (online with Chrome). The XCS teachers and staff monitor their progress,” said GDJDC director Cary Stanly. “Kids are engaged and focused but it’s still school. The teacher monitors their progress.”
The teachers will work 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday (to include six hours of classroom education, one hour of preparation, and one half hour for lunch, at MVJRC and GCJDC for a period of 183 days.
“It’s fantastic, the kids are invested, the teachers have a captive audience. The kids aren’t missing out on school. We try to help youth in house,” said Stanly, who oversees a 32-bed facility with youth aged 13-17.
XCS shall also provide administrative support in the form of an “Administrative Curriculum Liason” who shall meet with the teachers, MVJRC director, and the GCJDC director when necessary.
“We are the juvenile jail — we detain felony offenders,” stated Stanly, who works with kids from all over the county, some are detained for as little as two weeks.
According to the detention center staff, the teachers usually put in a partial day at one end of the facility and then walk down a corridor to teach at the adjoining facility without having to leave the grounds or travel to separate facilities.
Teachers assigned to the Juvenile Center are required to complete orientation training prior to assuming their duties. The training shall be provided by the Juvenile Center and includes: behavior reinforcement techniques, use of force practices, crisis prevention, etc.
