Face Forward Serving Juvenile Offenders Grants

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The U.S. Department of Labor (we, the Department or DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA), announces the availability of approximately $26,000,000 in grant funds to award approximately 26 Face Forward grants. “Face Forward” conveys the idea of youth leaving their past transgressions behind and looking forward towards a promising future. Through diversion and/or record expungement strategies, these grants will give youth a chance to succeed in the workplace and to avoid the stigma of a juvenile record. Diversion and expungement strategies are part of the Juvenile Justice system. These functions, operations and processes are under their jurisdiction. However, in order to provide the best possible outcomes for these youth, it is imperative to provide these additional supportive services. Diversion is “an attempt to divert, or channel out, youthful offenders from the juvenile justice system” (Bynum and Thompson, 1996). Expungement focuses on having juvenile records expunged, or eliminated. Juvenile arrests can follow youth for the rest of their lives and become a major barrier to inclusion and advancement in the workforce. The Face Forward grants will offer organizations the opportunity to develop programs that address this issue while developing the skills and opportunity youth need to move forward successfully in the workforce. The purpose of these grants is to improve the long-term labor market prospects of both court involved youth prior to adjudication and juvenile offenders. Grantees must utilize a strategy where they collaborate with non-profit legal services providers to assist participants with expungement actions, and/or be designated by the juvenile justice system as a diversion program.

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