Seeking new members for the Danbury Youth Diversion Team

Danbury Youth Services is seeking additional members for the Danbury Youth Diversion Team (YDT). What began as Juvenile Review Boards (JRBs) in 1968 has evolved into today’s Youth Diversion Team (YDT) model, now serving 135 communities across the state of Connecticut. The YDT is a community-based program that aims to redirect young people away from the traditional juvenile justice system by offering alternative, restorative interventions.

The YDT is a comprised of community members representing law-enforcement agencies, the school system, youth and family advocates, and substance abuse counselors. Youth under the age of 18 with no prior arrests who commit a misdemeanor offense are referred to the YDT Case Manager. Referrals are first filtered through the Danbury Police Department. If deemed appropriate by the Case Manager, the family is notified and given the opportunity to choose the diversion process. If the youth successfully completes the JRB program, the criminal charges are dropped and youth will not have a record. The YDT works to prevent further involvement with the justice system by providing intervention services tailored to each youth. Services may include counseling, tutoring, mentoring, substance abuse prevention, and community service. The program focuses on addressing the root causes of problematic behavior, promoting responsible decision-making, and connecting youth and families with community resources as well as regular check-ins, all managed by the DYS Case Manager.

Members of YDT should live in Greater Danbury and should be somewhat familiar with different services that are offered for youth in the community. All members provide input and collaborative thinking on local intervention ideas for every case that is reviewed.

The meetings are held bi-weekly via Zoom at 2:30pm. Please contact Andrea Capon at acapon@danburyyouthservices.org or call 203-748-2936 for more information.