The Juvenile Justice Fund Board of Directors and Staff announces the appointment of our new Executive Director, Sharon Simpson Joseph, Esq.

Please visit her new blog at blog.juvenilejusticefund.org to check in on
the Juvenile Justice Fund journey.

All Children Always Matter – this conviction drives and shapes the work of JJF. Our services help children and youth in the juvenile justice system recover from the damage of abuse, exploitation, fractured home life or no home at all.

These children are in the justice system because adults have failed them – sometimes by providing poor parental leadership, sometimes by abusing, neglecting or exploiting them. Recognizing that incarceration merely adds to the victimization, Fulton County juvenile judges instigated the formation of JJF nearly seven years ago to develop alternatives.

The JJF purpose was, and is, to create and support programs to help these children make a healthy new start – with their families whenever possible, without them if necessary. Our family services address conditions ranging from substance abuse to parenting deficits to loss of custodial rights. In all cases, the child’s well being is foremost.

Our programs address the range of problems that bring children into the juvenile justice system. JJF is best known for our aggressive fight against commercial sexual exploitation of children. We provide programmatic intervention on behalf of victims. Our residential treatment facility, Angela’s House, was the first safe house/treatment program in the Southeast for young girls who have been commercially exploited. Just as important, we are constant advocates for stronger laws, intensified enforcement and community awareness to protect children and get predators off the street. Georgia’s child pandering laws have become dramatically tougher through our relentless lobbying.

JJF also partnered with the Fulton County Children’s Advocacy Center to spearhead the first cross-jurisdictional data base that gives law enforcement and social service providers instant access to the abuse history of a child or family. This is a giant step forward in protecting children by revealing that what might look like one incident is actually part of an ongoing pattern. This database, called CACTIS, earned the 2007 TechBridge Technology Innovation Award.

Education is a priority of JJF. Our training shows police, prosecutors, case workers and others how to recognize and intervene in cases of sexual exploitation and predatory behavior. Last year we partnered with Georgia State University to introduce child protective training to youth welfare workers on a statewide basis. Our community education teaches adolescents to protect themselves and trains citizens to identify and respond to children at risk.

The Juvenile Justice Fund is the champion of children who need us most.

Sincerely,

Sharon Simpson Joseph, Esq. Executive Director	Jennifer Pendergast, Ph.D. President, Board of Directors