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Syllabus approved by UCC: April 28, 2011

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania

Lock Haven, Pennsylvania

Department of Criminal Justice

Juvenile Justice

I. Introductory Information

A. Department Name: Criminal Justice

B. Department Catalog Number: CRJS 301

C. Course Title: Juvenile Justice

D. Semester Hours of Credit: 3

E. Clock Hours Per Week: 3

F. Overlays: None

G. Restrictions Upon Student Registration: Enrollment is limited to criminal justice majors who have completed SOCI 101 and CRJS102 or by permission of the instructor.

II. Description of the Course

A.  Catalog description: Studies major components of the juvenile justice system in the United States. Emphasis is placed on major components of the juvenile justice system including; law enforcement, prosecution, courts, and corrections. Additional emphasis is placed on historical origins and philosophy of juvenile justice and evolution of reforms in juvenile justice. An overview of the legal framework in which the juvenile justice system operates highlights differences between adult and juvenile case processing.

B. Comprehensive description: (Optional)

III. Exposition

A.  Objectives: Upon completion of this course, students will be able to do the following:

  1. Describe and explain the historical origins of the juvenile justice system in the United States.
  2. Define contemporary philosophies and strategies used in the juvenile justice system to treat offenders.
  3. Describe and distinguish due process requirements for adjudicating delinquent and status offenders.
  4. Apply commonly accepted theories to the causes and intervention of juvenile crime.
  5. Describe intake, pre-adjudicatory, and dispositional processing of juveniles into the juvenile court and correctional system.
  6. Identify treatment and dispositional alternatives for juvenile offenders including diversions and alternative dispute resolution.
  7. Identify the functional responsibilities and organizational objectives of community and institution corrections for juvenile offenders.
  8. Describe the implication of juvenile waivers, sentencing, and long term institutionalization on juvenile offenders.
  9. Apply the evolving systems of care philosophy to delinquency prevention, intervention and the treatment of at-risk youth.

B.  Activities and Requirements: Student performance will be measured against the objectives in Section A and will be assessed through the following:

  1. Completion of assignments and readings.
  2. Class participation, successful scores on examinations and quizzes.
  3. Completion of a research project on the juvenile justice system.

C.  Major Units and Time Allotted:

Topic Time Allotted

  1. History of Juvenile Justice 4 hours
  2. Origin of the Juvenile Court 4 hours
  3. Theories of Delinquency 6 hours
  4. The Legal Rights of Juveniles 2 hours
  5. Intake and Preadjudicatory Processing 2 hours
  6. Adjudication and Disposition 2 hours
  7. Dispositional Alternatives and Diversions 6 hours
  8. Treatment Programming 3 hours
  9. Community Corrections (Probation) 3 hours
  10. Custodial Sanctions and Parole 3 hours
  11. Juvenile Waivers (Transfer Hearings) 2 hours
  12. Sentencing 2 hours
  13. Juvenile Institutionalization 2 hours
  14. Systems of Care 2 hours
  15. The Future of Juvenile Justice 2 hours

Total 45 hours

D. Materials and Bibliography:

1. Suggested textbooks :

Bartollas, C. & Miller, S. J. (2011). Juvenile justice in America (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Champion, D. (2010). The juvenile justice system: Delinquency, processing and the law (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Lawrence, R. & Hesse, M. (2010). Juvenile justice: The essentials. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

2. Other materials: Computers with internet capabilities.

3. Bibliographic support:

Bartollas, C. & Miller, S. J. (2008). Juvenile justice in America (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Bernard, T. J. & Kurlychek, M. (2010). The cycle of juvenile justice (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.

Hodge, R. D. Guerra, N. G. & Boxer, P. (Eds). (2008). Treating the juvenile offender. New York: The Guilford Press.

Howell, J. C. (2010). Preventing and reducing juvenile delinquency: A comprehensive framework. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Huizinga, D., Thornberry, T. P., Knight, K. E., Lovegrove, P.J., Loeber, R., Hill, K., et al. (2007). Disproportionate minority contact in the juvenile justice system: A study of differential minority arrest/referral to court in three cities. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of

Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Lawrence, R. & Hemmens, C. (2008). Juvenile justice: A text/reader. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Maurice, J. (2010). Youth and crime (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Mintz, S. (2004). Huck’s raft: The history of American childhood. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Seigel, L. J. & Welsh, B. C. (2009). Juvenile delinquency: Theory, practice and law (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage.

Scott, E.S. & Steinberg. L. (2008). Rethinking juvenile justice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Shelden, R. G., Tracy, S. K. & Brown, W. B. (2004). Youth gangs in American society (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Snyder, H. N. & Sickmund, M. (2006). Juvenile offenders and victims: 2006 national report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of

Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Taylor, R. W., Fritsch, E. J. & Caeti, T. J. (2002). Juvenile justice: Policies, programs, and practices. New York: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill.

Zahn, M. (ed.)(2009). The delinquent girl. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

IV. Standards

Students will be evaluated and grades will be assigned based upon university standards.

V. Rationale and Impact:

A. Currently, Criminal Justice majors are required to take Juvenile Delinquency (SOCI 301) as a “core requirement” for their degree in Criminal Justice. While it has been recognized that the course on Juvenile Delinquency has been designed to provide an inter-disciplinary focus on topics of delinquency and juvenile justice, it is has been increasingly demonstrated in research that curricula goals meeting minimum standards defined by the Academy of Criminal Justice Science (ACJS) include a required course in “juvenile justice systems” (Southerland, 2002, p. 599). Consequently, a 2008 curriculum analysis of undergraduate criminal justice programs found that 67% of criminal justice departments offered a “traditional criminal justice course” in juvenile justice. This course offering in Juvenile Justice will replace the current required course in Juvenile Delinquency (SOCI 301) and be included as a “core requirement”, providing a specialized focus on adjudication, disposition and treatment (i.e. case processing) of juvenile offenders for criminal justice majors.

B. Enrollment in this course will be restricted to declared criminal justice majors who have completed SOCI 101 and CRJS 102 or by permission of the instructor.

C. The addition of this course within the Criminal Justice Curricular offerings will not have an impact on any other program at Lock Haven. Criminal Justice majors will continue to seek enrollment in SOCI 301, which may count as an elective choice course toward the major requirements.

VI. Cost and Staff Analysis:

A.  This course will be taught by existing faculty in a regular load academic year rotation.

B.  This course will be offered in a regular academic year rotation for student enrollment.

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