Department of Youth Services' Newsletter
| January 2022 Edition
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Dear Colleagues,
As many of you know, we recently said goodbye to Commissioner Peter Forbes after 39 years of service with the Department. He left behind an incredible legacy of hard work and commitment to ensure that youth and staff are treated fairly and receive the support and training needed for maximum success. He saw these as the cornerstones of successful programs and public safety. I am honored to have the opportunity to continue the work he started.
Commissioner Forbes did not shy away from difficult conversations about race, equity, and the impact of current and historical events on youth and staff. He confronted the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic head on, doing all he could to navigate these uncharted waters. He was always concerned about staff and youth assaults, staff recruitment and retention and devoted significant agency resources to understanding the issues and implemented strategies to address them.
I am committed to building on the solid foundations he established for ongoing work and ensuring no traction is lost in this time of transition.
Due to the Omicron variant, our agency is seeing a rise in COVID-19 cases among our staff and youth. We are facing health concerns and staff shortages but are working to administer programming safely and effectively, while simultaneously keeping the safety of our youth and staff at the forefront of our agenda.
I look forward to getting out to the regions as well as meeting with our state and local partners in the coming weeks. I hope you and our families are all having a safe and healthy start to the New Year.
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Best Regards,
Cecely Reardon
Acting Commissioner
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Department of Youth Services' Names Nokthula (Thula) Sibanda Ph.D Chief of Staff |
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The Department of Youth Services is excited to announce the promotion of Thula Sibanda. Thula has been with DYS since 2017, most recently as the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative (JDAI) State Coordinator where she worked with local and state partners to reduce racial and ethnic disparities and reduce detention rates and lengths of stay for low-risk youth.
Thula is taking her knowledge, expertise, and passion into her new role as Chief of Staff where she will:
· oversee the development of the agency's race and equity work plan
and implementation;
· maintain contact with the Executive Office of Health and Human
Services, agency counterparts, and our local and state partners;
· and continue to lead the JDAI initiative within the Commonwealth by
managing staff, and state-wide initiatives as well as supporting and
guiding the JDAI Governance Committee, to align our work on reforms
with our strategic goals.
Please join us in congratulating Thula Sibanda!
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The Department of Youth Services has been impacted by the surge in COVID cases due to the Omicron Variant. Although there is still research being conducted, studies suggest that this variant has a higher transmissible rate than the original SARS-CoV-2 virus. Although, breakthrough infections of individuals that are fully vaccinated have occurred, vaccines have been seen to protect against severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths when individuals contract the Omicron variant
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Group Insurance Coverage Announcement
On Monday, January 10, 2022, the federal government issued guidance that insurance carriers and plan sponsors (such as the GIC) will be required to cover the cost of up to 8 at-home/over-the-counter rapid test kits for COVID-19 each month per person, in response to the widespread impact of the Omicron variant. This coverage became effective on Saturday, January 15, 2022, and will remain in place for an unspecified period of time. It is important to note that this federal initiative will take time to implement fully.
GIC members who pay out-of-pocket for the COVID rapid tests can seek reimbursement for the cost from the pharmacy benefits manager (ExpressScript for current employees). The GIC is asking all members who purchase a test to hold onto their receipts, which you will soon be able to submit, along with a forthcoming claim form for reimbursement. Read more here.
Resources available for residents of Massachusetts to obtain testing:
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Race, Equity, and Inclusion Update |
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For several years, DYS has been working to increase awareness and understanding of how racial and ethnic disparities impact agency staff, youth, and communities we serve. We firmly believe that intentional and continued focus supporting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the workplace adds tremendous value for our collective workforce and our youth.
Workforce and Training
In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, DYS has maintained ongoing efforts to prioritize the hiring and promotion of persons of color (POC) and women. At the start of FY2022 (7/1/2021-6/30/2022), representation continued to be strong – with persons of color representing 75% of promotions and 72.5% of new hires in this fiscal year’s 2nd Quarter (10/1-12/31/2021). Women represented 10% of new hires and 25% of promotions this 2nd Quarter. This reflected consistent progress in our hiring and promotion of POC and women from previous Quarters in FY 2021 through the first half of FY2022.
In the Fall of 2021, DYS implemented our Racial Equity and Inclusion Training to engage our workforce in an important conversation about race and equity. This training will provide employees a shared understanding on terms and concepts commonly used when discussing types of racism, ways that racism is perpetuated, how to have productive conversations on racism, and how youth may be affected by racism and inequitable behaviors, with a focus on how we must all, as DYS employees, do what we can to treat DYS youth and staff equitably,
To improve retention and increase professional development opportunities, DYS implemented our professional development initiative Connecting the Teams. This initiative is offered to DYS residential staff and is focused on team building and improving communication. It represents a recognition of the fact that the Juvenile Justice Youth Development Specialist’s role encompasses more than program safety and security, by to elevating the active roles can JJDYS play as coach, mentor and advocate while building a trusting relationship with the youth. Also, we continued to offer our Training Mentoring Program for newly hired JJYDS that is led by a seasoned direct care/trainer that you will learn more about in this newsletter. This Mentoring program is part of the on-boarding training that delivers real time mentoring and coaching during the first year that the new hire is working in the residential program. The Mentoring is part of the Department’s continuing efforts to retain staff by supporting their, wellness, and professional development.
Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative Update
The Massachusetts Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) recently launched the Race, Equity and Inclusion statewide subcommittee. The subcommittee, co-chaired by Pamerson O. Ifill, Probation’s Deputy Commissioner for Pre-trial Services and Marisol Garcia, Senior Director of Health Law Advocates, includes representatives from Administrative Office of the Trial Court, Committee for Public Counsel Services, Department of Youth Services, Department of Mental Health, Department of Public Health, Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, Parent Professional Advocacy League, and the MA’s Chiefs of Police Association. The role of the subcommittee is to collaboratively work to identify strategies that will move youth serving agencies in Massachusetts from race equity and inclusion theory to practice with the goal of equipping agencies with the tools needed to advance equitable policies and initiatives for all youth in the Commonwealth. The subcommittee’s work will be guided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation seven steps to embracing equity (see below) which can be found in their Race Equity and Inclusion Action Guide.
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7 Key Steps for Advancing Race Equity and Inclusion |
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The new year brings the excitement of new development and progress with diversity, training, equity, racial identity, and strategic alignment across the agency. Stay Tuned! |
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Each year, DYS publishes its Annual ' Juvenile Recidivism Report which examines the effectiveness of interventions with juvenile offenders using “recidivism,” the most common measure. The DYS study defines, recidivism as a conviction in the adult criminal justice system for an offense committed within one year of discharge from DYS custody. |
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In each of the years from 2012 to 2017, approximately 1 in 4 youth were convicted on an offense committed within one year of discharge from DYS custody. Most of the youths who recidivated were male and youth of color from major urban centers. |
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Cultural Cooking Training for DYS' Food Service Staff Brings Diverse Meals to Our Residential Youth and Staff
by WaiLing Balsley
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DYS has been partnering with nutritionists and nonprofit organizations to give trainings on cultural meals which have so far included Latin American and African Heritage cuisines at the Department’s food services’ meetings. |
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Latin American Cuisine Presentation
Sandra Arevalo, a Registered Dietitian who specializes in Latin American Cooking as well as an expert in diabetes nutrition for Latin American communities, recently held a training and presentation for our Food Service Staff. During this presentation, she gave an overview of Latin American culture from the regions of North, Central and South America and the Caribbean islands. Though people from those areas share a similar culture, Sandra emphasized “one size doesn’t fit all” for what people eat. Food choices differ depending on the available resources and the tradition of each community. Despite the wide range of geolocation influenced by Latin American cooking, Sandra classified the cuisine into four sub regions: Mexico, Central America, South America, and Caribbean. The similarities of meals across the four regions are the staple foods and the flavors. The common examples of staple foods were rice and beans, pork, poultry, and starchy vegetables such as corns, potatoes, and yucca. In Latin American cooking, flavors are enhanced by using tomatoes, chiles, herbs, and spices. On the flip side, there are differences in meal components, other than the staple foods, eaten in different regions. For instance, Caribbean food is a fusion of African and Latin American cultures. A good portion of the food choices are strongly influenced by their African ancestors. Food such as malanga, okra, and black-eyed peas are a few examples.
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African Heritage Cuisine Presentation
Sarah Anderson, the Heritage Diet Curriculum Coordinator, and a specialist in African Heritage diet at Oldways, a nonprofit organization to promote healthy eating with cultural meals, also presented to our food services staff. Sarah described the African diaspora and its linkage to food eaten in certain areas. She explained that the African diaspora describes the geo-political areas where people of African descent live due to slavery. The major areas are continental Africa, Caribbean, the Central and South America, as well as the American South. Sarah described that the meals from each region share components, but the food choices can be substantially different depending on available geographic resources. In the African Heritage diet, a variety of plant-based foods, such as vegetables, grains, and legumes, were eaten. Historically, African ancestors relied on mostly leafy greens, tubers, whole grains, beans and peanut, whole fruits, herbs and spices. As the descendants were forcefully moved to different continents, their choices of foods changed based on the available crops harvested in their region. For example, sweet potatoes replaced yams in the American South. Furthermore, Sarah pointed out that food that was packed with nutrients was the significant part of the African Heritage diet. So, in order to eat like the African ancestor, she suggested to choose more whole grains (millet, fonio), dark greens (collards, mustard greens), beans (lentils, black beans), herbs and spices (cumin, turmeric).
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At the end of the presentations, Sandra and Sarah offered their recipes (sofrito and cold black eyed pea salad) to showcase the cultural ingredients of the Latin American and African cultures. They are easy to make but packed in flavors. Click on the images below for recipes. |
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About the author
WaiLing Balsley is the DYS dietitian. She dedicates herself to advocate healthy living for all ages. WaiLing works with DYS youth and staff to make changes through mindful eating, create smart ideas for better nutrition and build a healthy culture.
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Holiday Decorating Contest Winner's Announcement |
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The 2021 annual end of the year Statewide Holiday Decorating contest had its most exciting competition yet, as the regions worked hard on submitting their entries and a whopping 186 votes were counted. There were sixteen contest entries which consisted of residential, treatment, assessment, and detention programs along with a few of the District Offices that created and submitted entries, all vying for the coveted Trophy and bragging rights.
The winning regions will host award ceremony luncheons and hand out certificates to the winning participants as a way to congratulate them on their accomplishments!
The 2021 Statewide Holiday Decorating Contest winners are as follows:
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Best Telework Decoration:
Webster Winter Wonderland
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Best Youth Creation:
Westfield District Office Gingerbread Hospital
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Best Holiday Theme:
Southeast Secure Revocation Christmas Around the World
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The Department of Youth Services' Human Resources and Training Team realize that starting a career at DYS requires significant knowledge in a wide range of topics. Recently, the Training Mentor position was created with the goal of providing additional support and help to reinforce best practices learned at Basic training to new employees over the course of their first year of employment. Throughout the year the Training Mentor conducts ongoing check-ins with the employee and their supervisor.
Tom Duggan, a 26-year employee with DYS, was hired in September to be the Training Mentor. The Department of Youth Services' Director of Communications, Katy Laverriere, recently met with Tom to learn more about his career at DYS and the impact this new initiative has had on the agency.
Tom started his career with DYS as a Recreation Coordinator in the Central Region in 1996. Since then, he has worked a wide variety of jobs including shift administrator, transporter, trainer, caseworker, and assistant program director. He shared how much he enjoyed working in direct care with our youth- especially during his time as a caseworker, where he worked with youth and families in the community. To this day, he still receives calls from residential and YES youth, whom he worked with throughout his time with DYS, and is updated on how well they are doing. "It just makes you proud," said Tom.
Tom expressed the importance of supporting new staff because of the direct impact they have on our youth. As part of this Training Mentorship Program, Tom meets staff during basic training, builds relationships with them, and checks in with them throughout the first year of employment with DYS. He assists new staff with onboarding and scheduling, answers any questions they may have, and checks on them while working in the programs. After the first week of Basic Training, Tom schedules time with the new employee and with the direct supervisor both together and separately. He communicates with the employee about things they learned at DYS Basic Training and the Regional Trainings to see if the new employee understood the topic, had any questions, and talk about additional support they may need. Based on these discussions, Tom reviews specific tasks and topics such as Positive Youth Development (PYD), Defense and Disengagement Techniques, Situational Awareness where the employee may need additional information based on their assessment or the supervisor’s.
So far, Tom has mentored 28 new staff and 11 more at the start of this new class this month. We look forward to learning more about the success of this new Training Mentorship Program.
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DYS Updates/Announcements |
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Did you know that DYS is on Instagram?!
Follow us at @mass_DYS or https://www.instagram.com/mass_dys/ from your browser for agency updates, recruitment and employment opportunities, and just some feel good pictures to warm your heart during these difficult times.
We encourage staff and partners share any DYS related images (with a brief description) to potentially be featured on our social medial. Send to Katy Laverriere via email (kathryn.a.laverriere@mass.gov) or text (857-930-6072).
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DEPARTMENT OF YOUTH SERVICES [www.mass.gov/dys]
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Kathryn A Laverriere
Director of Communications
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