Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice March 2020

Where DJJ employees gather to stay informed and celebrate our victories

Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice December 2020

Where DJJ employees gather to stay informed and celebrate our victories

From Planting To Plate

Left: A Bon Air JCC resident votes during mock election. Right: A resident casts his ballot.

Mock Voting Provides Real Civics LessonAfter weeks of planning and anticipation,

the residents of Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center (JCC) participated in a “mock” election in which they cast ballots for President, U.S. Senator and local representatives, with 18 eligible residents over the age of 18 casting actual ballots that were counted in the election.

“The year 2020 has presented the world with challenges no one anticipated,” said DJJ

Director Valerie Boykin. “The pandemic also happens to have occurred during a presidential election year in our country, and the exchange of political ideas has never been more important than it is now. The youth in DJJ’s care follow current events as we all do, and want to make a difference in whatever way they can. That’s why I decided this summer to ask our staff to prepare those youth who are eligible to be able to

Left: A resident checks an informational bulletin board he helped design. Center: Resident-made campaign posters. Right: RS-II Catherine Burrell displays 18 ballots that eligible residents completed; she delivered them to the local voter registrar later that day.

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cast their votes, and to educate those not yet old enough about the process so they could be ready when the time came for them to vote.”

Under the guidance of its advisor, RS-II Franklin Wilkes, Bon Air’s Student Government Association (SGA) took a lead role in helping their fellow residents learn about and prepare for the electoral process. They began with a virtual educational session via Zoom, attended by Director Valerie Boykin, Policy Analyst Lara Todd, Deputy Director for Residential Services Joyce Holmon, Deputy Director for Education Dr. Melinda Boone, Reentry Manager Ashaki McNeil, Bon Air Superintendent Russell Jennings, Assistant Bon Air Superintendent Lakeisha Henry, Residential Program Manager Shaun Parker, Community Manager Rukiya Bellamy, Residential Admin. Specialist Patee Brock and Rights and Accountability Manager Brooke Henderson.

SGA members then met with residents in every unit to help get them ready for their first-ever voting experience. Each unit created information flyers and campaign posters, and looked at sample ballots. On the day of the election, residents picked up their ballots, went to actual polling booths on loan to DJJ where they marked the ballots, then dropped them into a ballot box.

In addition to Bon Air JCC residents, DJJ’s Reentry Unit was instrumental in getting 16 eligible residents in eight of DJJ’s 10 Community Placement Programs (CPPs)

Above: A Zoom meeting was held with members of the Student Government Association to go over the history of elections and how they work; a resident displays a campaign poster; RS-II Franklin Wilkes explains the voting process to unit members. Below: Eligible residents of the Community Placement Program at Merrimac Juvenile Detention Center in Williamsburg line up at a polling location to cast their ballots.

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Clockwise from left: RS-II Franklin Wilkes supervises ballot-counting; a resident counts ballots as another tallies the totals; a third resident inserts counted ballots in envelope.

throughout Virginia also registered to vote. “We were able to take five of our CPP residents out to vote,” reports Sara Jones, Treatment Programs Manager at Merrimac Juvenile Detention Center in Williamsburg. “I’m really happy that they got to have the experience.”

“The residents who participated were very excited ... they felt they were really making a difference, especially those who cast actual official ballots,” said Resident Specialist II Catherine Burrell. “As he was casting his ballot, one resident asked me, ‘Is this official? Will my vote really count?’ I assured him that it would.”

Learning about the voting process will

continue, now that the mock election is complete. “We will talk later about restoration of rights,” Wilkes says. “It will be important for them to know about this as they return to their communities.”

“I was impressed by the SGA Executive Team’s enthusiasm for facilitating this initiative,” said Brock. “But even more impressive was the conversations it spurred among the residents on the importance of voting and being an informed voter. The residents who were qualified to cast actual ballots expressed gratitude for the opportunity, which they said helped them feel more a part of society and a part of making their community and America better.”

Bon Air JCC Mock Election ResultsU.S. PresidentJoseph Biden, Democrat 58Donald J. Trump, Republican 12Jo Jorgensen, Libertarian 2Write-ins 6U.S. SenatorMark Warner, Democrat 61Daniel Gade, Republican 11Write-ins 6

U.S. House of RepresentativesFourth DistrictDonald McEachin, Democrat 26Leon Benjamin, Republican 10Write-ins 4Seventh DistrictAbigail Spanberger, Democrat 26Nick J. Freitas, Republican 10Write-ins 1

Constitutional Amendment #1Yes 46No 28

Constitutional Amendment #2Yes 52No 21

TOTAL VOTES CAST: 81

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We also honor those who serve with distinction in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric (NOAA) Commissioned Corps.

Veterans Day, originally celebrated as Armistice Day, was first issued on November 11, 1919 by President Woodrow Wilson a year after the end of World War I. The purpose of Armistice day was to honor the fallen soldiers of The Great War for their sacrifice and bravery. 7 years later in 1926, Congress adopted a resolution requesting President Coolidge issue annual proclamations on November 11, making Armistice Day a legal holiday.

In 1954, after having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress — at the urging of the veterans service organizations — struck the word “Armistice” and inserted the word “Veterans.” With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954,

Nov. 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

Though the holiday is currently and was originally celebrated on Nov. 11, the day was moved to the fourth Monday of October in 1971 due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. Finally, on September 20, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed a law which returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of Nov. 11, beginning in 1978.

DJJ thanks all of its veterans for their service!

From left: Brian McGuire, Security Operations Manager, Bon Air JCC; Jeremiah Williams, Probation Officer, CSU 2–Virginia Beach.

Renee Copeland, Probation Officer, CSU 7–Newport News

Western Region Rocking Despite COVID

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CSU 23A – Roanoke

Clockwise, from front: Director Tracy King, Anita Manley, Probation Supervisor Sherry Brown, Letitia Marshall, Karisha Williams, Rosalind Bowles, Raymond Kasey, Sabrina Cowan, Morgan Sawyers, Anthony Johnson, Tonikka Fowler, OSS Supervisor Marie Smith, Mary Callender, Taylor Newcomb, Jasmin Lawson, Supervisor Christopher Roberts, James Burton.

CSU 23 – Salem CSU 21 – MartinsvilleCSU 23 staff in front of old Roanoke County Courthouse, from left: Probation/Intake Offier Amy Cole, Probation Officer Dakota Tomlin, Senior Probation Officer Laura Maynard, Director Carolyn Minix Probation Officer Joseph Sheffield, Probation Officer Kelsey Curtis.

CSU 21 staff, from left: Office Services Specialist Karen Conner, Probation Supervisor Holly Johnson, Probation Officer Caitlin Draper, Director Kevin Meeks, Probation Officer Tiffany Martin.

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CSU 12 recently conducted a food drive for the Chesterfield County Food Bank. This year, they made it a contest between five units. The winner was the Intake Unit, supervised by Jennifer Underwood. The unit consists of Michele Banalett, Ron Burroughs, Linda Waytes, Lori Wooten, and Christen Cox. They collected about 100 food items, accounting for about one-third of the more than 300 items collected.

The food was delivered to the food bank, which was very appreciative of the collection.

Amanda AdamsProbation Officer

Jackie CriggerOSS Senior

Dominique RobinsonProbation Officer

Stephanie UnderwoodProbation Officer

Dejourie FullertonProbation Officer

Kevin SuttonProbation Supervisor

Shelby HinkinsProbation Superisor

Teresa BrownProbation Officer

Niesha WitcherProbation Officer Senior

Laurie HallOSS

CSU 12’s Intake Unit, the winners of this year’s food drive, from left: Ronald Burroughs, Probation Officer; Jennifer Underwood, Probation Supervisor; Michele Banalett, Probation Officer Senior; Kimberly Michniak, Family Resource Program Coordinator; Probation Officers Linda Waytes, Lori Wooten and Christen Cox.

CSU 12 Collects, Donates 300 Items To Food Bank

CSU 27 – Christiansburg

Staff members of the Christiansburg field office of CSU 27, from left: Office Services Specialist Paula Blamer, Probation Officer Hollie Fitzgerald, Probation Supervisor Doug Poe.

CSU 25 – Lexington

Staff members of the Lexington field office of CSU 25, from front: Senior Probation Officer Lisa Hutzel, Office Services Specialist Donna Dunn, Supervisor Samantha Higgins, Probation Officer Mike Taylor.

Most of the items were used for lunch bags that are made for children who are not currently receiving lunch at school. Many of the items included granola bars, pudding, fruit cups, and juice boxes. The rest of the items will be distributed to the citizens of Chesterfield County.

“I want to say thank you to every staff person for participating in this worthwhile event,” said CSU 12 Director William Stanley. “I challenge any other CSU to match our effort.”