By Chelsea Clinton
Rock Center Special Correspondent
I admittedly don’t remember my first day at Booker Arts Magnet School or Horace Mann Junior High School (now a middle school) in Little Rock, Ark., despite the many photographs my parents took and still have. I know though, I will never forget the first time I walked into the New Beginnings Youth Development Center and within it, the Maya Angelou Academy, in Laurel, Md.
Although not located in the District of Columbia, New Beginnings is where the District sends many of its male juvenile offenders, teenagers between the ages of 14 and 20 who are incarcerated for crimes like armed robbery, auto theft and assault.
At any point in time, around 60 young men, whom the school refers to as ‘scholars,’ live and go to school within the facility. Some teenagers live behind the high razor-wire fences for a few days, others for a year and a few sometimes even longer if additional weeks or months increase the likelihood that a young man will complete his GED or graduate from high school.
The brainchild of James Forman, Jr., and David Domenici, the Maya Angelou Academy aims every day to live up to its name, its credo, through setting high expectations for scholars in and out of the classroom.
Domenici, the son of former New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici, served as a school principal for the academy between 2007 and 2011. He now leads the Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings at the University of Maryland. Forman, the son of the eponymous author and American civil rights leader, is a clinical professor of law at Yale Law School.
Forman and Domenici first founded a charter school in Washington, D.C., focused on students who had served time in the juvenile system, students who had failed in traditional settings and students with special needs. Their track record of success working with at-risk students, as measured in test scores, graduation rates, post-secondary education attendance rates and future employment, led District officials to select Domenici and Forman in 2007 to manage a school within the juvenile facility. Forman and Domenici agreed, provided they could have a meaningful voice in helping determine the culture at New Beginnings, both inside and outside their Maya Angelou Academy classrooms.
Teachers at the academy reward scholars’ scholastic and personal successes with recognition – awards and privileges that are rare in the experiences of most of these teens.
Staff members also confront scholars’ bad behavior by talking about disappointment, choosing to have kids ‘walk it off’ versus blunt punishment and helping these teenagers take responsibility for their actions.
From the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services officer who patted me down whenever I walked into the facility to the teachers whose classes I watched to the people who work in the cafeteria (and helped feed our whole crew) to the men who taught the juveniles, the would-be men, how to cut hair or understand the responsibilities of being a father--everyone we saw worked hard to ensure every scholar knew he could change the course of his life.
Arguably, no one I met embodied this commitment more than Carl Matthews. Mr. Matthews plays a myriad of roles at New Beginnings. A reluctant yet inspirational role model, he teaches scholars how to cut grass at the facility and teaches them the importance of giving back by taking scholars on periodic trips to cut the grass for D.C.’s elderly and indigent.
On our first walk together, Mr. Matthews took us on a tour of a place where the grass sorely needed cutting, the old Oak Hill facility. The nadir of juvenile education stands as an eerie reminder of ‘the before,’ down the road from where the Maya Angelou Academy stands today, but on the same property.
Mr. Matthews worked at Oak Hill in many capacities, including as a guard. What he experienced at Oak Hill continues to deeply affect him. No wonder Oak Hill still stands abandoned, a ghost town, a vacant reminder of a facility that failed and was eventually closed through a class action suit, years of court monitoring, and officials who finally said: enough.
Every single scholar we talked to knew acquaintances or relatives who had served time at Oak Hill. Scholars were thankful they were not there now and grateful to people like Matthews because they knew he meant what he said – he would help them gain skills that could serve as a pathway to a job when on the outside.
I saw fierce hope at Maya Angelou in the eyes of Forman and Domenici, the students we spent time with, the teachers we watched at their smart boards and the principal who choreographed each day seamlessly.
A few of the adults we met at New Beginnings had themselves been incarcerated and were determined to be the best living testament that people can and do change, even if it’s hard and even if one has to do so without any real role models in their own homes or neighborhoods.
Maya Angelou Academy is sending a clear message that for many young men, thankfully, there can be life, opportunity and yes, a new beginning on the other side of the fence.
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I am totally disappointed with this report. Chelsea Clinton is NOT a reporter. She did not convey the essence of this story with the emotion that a true "reporter" should.
$820 per day per student? How is that possible? 100 students living at this facility for 365 days a year means this facility costs nearly $30 million.
Is this a reasonable cost to expect society to bear?
I'd also like to understand how such a budget is possible? How many employees are there to take care of 100 students? How much do the facilities cost? How much does the food cost? What are the maintenance costs?
Is this just another example of how government inefficiency runs amok? Or, is there more to the story of who is making millions of dollars siphoning funds from the system?
Thanks so very much for this excellent feature. I teach Math at an Alternative High School during the school year and at Boys Town during the summer. Both places operate just as your featured school does, they respect, value and challenge these kids. It is so rewarding to tap into their potential and a privilege to teach them. Thanks again!
$820 - per student per day? Are you kidding? That amounts to approximately $30 million a year for just 100 students!
How can this be possible? How many staff, how much food, and how much do other costs run per student? College costs are soaring, but $30,000 per student is considered pretty high. 100 students at this cost would be $3 million, or about $82 a day.
The question posed, shouldn't the kids who need the most get the best takes on entirely different meaning in this economic context. I also have to wonder if someone is skimming from this budget.
I must not be able to read. I saw no mention of $820 per day per student. Where did C P Accountant get his/her information?
It cost cost $150 a day just for juvenile detention in some places in KS. I think that giving a child an education and a second chance at life being a productive citizen is worth $820 a day.
I cannot imagine that running a facility of this magnitude would be cheap. It is not just a school. It is a home for these kids, a detention center, and a counseling center.
How much do you think that it would cost to run all of those facilities for one child? What price are you willing to put on a child getting a second chance in life, to learn from their past experience and to make a change? How do you know that a child coming from that facility won't be an amazing person doing amazing things with their future?
Another sad story about the utter failure of too many blacks in today's society.
It would seem this facitly is taking tax doallars to teach these kids what their parents didn't teach them. To have respect for others, respect for ones self, desire to suceede in life.
As a black man who was born in the middle of the Civil Rights Struggle I am shocked at how in just 1 generation blacks have gone so far backwards. And when ever anyone brings up these short comings they are pounced on by black elites, so called community leaders and called sell outs.
Far to many of today's black youths are not raised to have any respect for themselves which means they have no respect for anyone else and wind up becoming the problem of the tax payer.
The murder rate in Black America is staggering. young black males killing other young black males in numbers that if it were whites doing the killings blacks would be in an uproar. yet those same blacks are mute about the black genocide going on in America.
its no wonder facilities like this need to exist.
In the television piece it mentions $820 per day per offender to house and educate. That stopped me cold so I googled and came to this online story which as the previous commenter (Al fom CS) noted does not mention this figure. I replayed it several times and it can't possible true and if it is this would be the most egregious example of waste ever. $300,000 per student/offender per year! In two to three years that would be more than they could make in lifetime earnings. Forget Shakespeare they better be finding Higgs Boson particles for that much loot. Shoddy journalism, por fact checks and no scratching beneath the surface for the real story. The privileges of nepotism never cease to amaze. Kudos to CP Accountant for noticing and comments. I thought I might be crazy.
I just saw this on a PDF file for a 2011 performance report of DYRS of the District of Columbia.
Capacity: 60 beds
FY2011 average daily youth population: 62 Number of direct care staff: 155 Serves males committed to DYRS custody
8400 River Road, Laurel, MD 20742 Phone: 202-299-3100 Fax: 240-456-4648
Of they have 155 full time staff at about 80K a staff member for salary, benefits, pensions, health care, payroll taxes for 60 offenders that is 2.5 staff members per offender at 80K that would be about 200K in staff expenses alone per offender per year not counting facilities, energy, meals etc.
So maybe $820 per day is actually being spent. I am taken aback and trying to see if there can be an justification for this spending. Little help from someone would be appreciated.
The cost cited in the piece is in line with the expenses both public and private agencies in juvenile corrections incur for housing, educating, and treating youth. Much higher are the life time costs associated with locking up individuals in correctional facilities.
While families, schools, and communities have often failed to provide the support children who break the law need, New Beginnings is a great example of the possible.
I find it so interesting and so alarming that the comments under this video about juvenile rehabilitation are mainly negative. People are so worried about how much this facility costs per day that they fail to realize what the alternative would be. If they spent no money on these children, the facility would be run down and the education system would be below average at best. I am not a fan of this facility and the detainment of juveniles overall, BUT if much of the spending is being used to educate these children than spend all the money needed! It is unfortunate that this amount of money (it would be cheaper) can not be spent on the front end. If a proactive approach was taken versus a reactive, than America's children, epsecially those communities deemed as disadvantaged, would have a better education system from the beginning, leaving many of the beds in the juvenile facilities vacant. Many of these children who enter the justice system would love to read and write if they only knew how. Unfortunately their worlds outside of the barbed wire fences doesnt always allow for the "American Dream". Once people recognize that their dollars would be better spent helping youth who can't help themselves, then the big business of the prison and juvenile residential systems would become a thing of the past. Until then, if they do get arrested and must be detained, lets encourage their success through education.
Being a math teacher and a numbers person I definitely caught the $820 per day cost. Remember though, length of stay varies and they are turning the tables on individuals and future generations being in the system. It can be very successful long term because it turns these kids around and in turn their kids, etc. I'm with Erica. This is a great story, don't get lost in the negative thinking. They are changing lives in such a positive way and in doing so affecting real change in families, neighborhoods and society.
Erica Chapman I am with you. I am alarmed by all the negative comments following this story. It is sad that in this country we throw away our troubled youth. People are always quick to say "oh they are not my problem, their parents should have done a better job". I work for a brand new charter school in New York City where our main focus is helping students who are either homeless, in the foster care system, or have been released from detention centers. I have been teaching for over 14 years and this is the first year I really feel like I am making a difference. My coworkers recently met with workers from Maya Angelou Academy. We were all blown away by the great/hard work they do. I really wish people would take a step back and look at the positive change that is going on. Those that complain about the money being spent on these students, take a step back and think of the great work being done here. We pay politicians, professional ball players a ton of money for nothing..... why aren't we complaining about that? So sad.
I also agree with Erica..."If a proactive approach was taken versus a reactive, than America's children, epsecially those communities deemed as disadvantaged, would have a better education system from the beginning, leaving many of the beds in the juvenile facilities vacant. Many of these children who enter the justice system would love to read and write if they only knew how. Unfortunately their worlds outside of the barbed wire fences doesnt always allow for the "American Dream". Once people recognize that their dollars would be better spent helping youth who can't help themselves, then the big business of the prison and juvenile residential systems would become a thing of the past. Until then, if they do get arrested and must be detained, lets encourage their success through education..."
I believe the report said the graduation rate of the Maya Angelou Academy is 92% which is pretty amazing for a juvenile detention center. It goes to show how much a positive approach to any problem usually has a better outcome.
I'm a numbers guy too. They also stated that on average, there are 70,000 kids incarcerated per day. So, if you use this school as a model, at $820 per student per day it would cost the USA 21 Billion dollars per year. The story didn't give a success rate, but at best, this money pays for a GED for some percentage of these kids. Sorry, but I just don't think it's worth it.
I have watched in dismay as my son has spiraled downhill. At 14 chemical abuse propelled him into residential, outpatient and intensive outpatient for the past 2 years. State tests put him at the 95th percentile in math, science, and reading every year since testing started. Now he is below average because he has learned NOTHING for the two years he has been in these dumbed down "schools". His "education" has eroded his self esteem. The people that run these programs and the poor excuse for teachers are paying themselves top wages and doing really minimum level work in all areas for the children in the programs. They bill at $800-$1000/day for their "services". It is all a how much money can we collect from insurance, government and parents game. It is not about the kids. So $820/day needs to be kept in perspective. At least they are doing a good job. Maybe...
As much as I sympathize and feel for the young people they featured in this story, I was still shocked to hear that this program costs $820 per student, per day! I'm sorry, but my sympathy can only go so far! I simply can not ignore the fact that for every juvenile offender at this facility, there is surely a juvenile out there that has faced similar hardships and that has not yet committed a crime. What message are we sending to those children tonight? Personally, I am more inclined to support underprivileged youth who have made good choices, despite their hardships, rather than "rewarding" those who are convicted of crimes. The story mentioned that they believe the children respond better to praise and encouragment...so let's praise and encourage on the front end, rather than waiting for them to commit the crime, and than paying more than 3 times what most families make in a year after the fact...just my take on it.