Federal Resources

The Choice Neighborhoods initiative will transform distressed neighborhoods and public and assisted projects into viable and sustainable mixed-income neighborhoods by linking housing improvements with appropriate services, schools, public assets, transportation, and access to jobs. A strong emphasis will be placed on local community planning for access to high-quality educational opportunities, including early childhood education. In addition to public housing authorities, the initiative will involve local governments, non-profits, and for-profit developers in undertaking comprehensive local planning with residents and the community.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has partnered with GreatSchools, a national nonprofit educational resource for parents, to provide an online database that can assist parents in choosing a school for their child. The database contains more than 200,000 public, charter, magnet, and private schools, serving grades K-12 across the country.

HUD created Neighborhood Networks in 1995 to encourage property owners to establish multiservice community learning centers in HUD insured and assisted properties. Neighborhood Networks was one of the first federal initiatives to promote self-sufficiency and help provide computer access to low-income housing communities. Neighborhood Networks centers are alike. With support from innovative public-private partnerships, Neighborhood Networks centers sponsor a range of services and programs. Nearly all centers offer job training and educational opportunities, and many also provide programs that include access to healthcare information and microenterprise development.

The Every Student, Every Day: A Community Toolkit to Address and Eliminate Chronic Absenteeism (PDF, 69 pages) toolkit provides information, suggested action steps, and lists of existing tools and resources for individuals, leaders, and systems to begin, or enhance the work of, effective, coordinated community action to address and eliminate chronic absenteeism.

This fact sheet describes a joint commitment from multiple federal departments to align supports and program delivery to promote college access and completion. The guidance will support colleges and universities in their efforts to expand college opportunity. 

This Bulletin examines aftercare services that provide youth with comprehensive health, mental health, education, family, and vocational services upon their release from the juvenile justice system.

This site provides information and resources focused on the disproportionate number of minority youth who come into contact with the juvenile justice system

To help teachers address issues surrounding youth in confinement, the National Juvenile Detention Association's Center for Research and Professional Development (CRPD) has developed a National Training Curriculum for Educators of Youth in Confinement Facilities (Educator's Curriculum). Topics addressed include behavioral development, mental health, and assessment.

This bulletin describes effective approaches to reintegrating youth from juvenile justice system settings into the education mainstream and provides information about promising programs, practices, and resources.

The G.R.E.A.T. Program is a school-based, law enforcement officer-instructed classroom curriculum. With prevention as its primary objective, the program is intended as an immunization against delinquency, youth violence, and gang membership.

This report presents the findings from a national cross-site evaluation of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative, a collaboration by the Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, and Justice that aims to help students feel safe at school, avoid drug use and violence, and access mental health services.

The United States Department of Education (ED) and the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) collectively issues a guidance to explain how, within existing law, postsecondary institutions can voluntarily consider race to achieve diversity.

The United States Department of Education (ED) and the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) collectively issued this guidance to explain how, within existing law, elementary and secondary schools can voluntarily consider race to achieve diversity and avoid racial isolation.

The Departments of Education and Justice released joint guidance (PDF, 40 pages) reminding states, school districts, and schools of their obligations under federal law to ensure that English learner students have equal access to a high-quality education and the opportunity to achieve their full academic potential. Resources accompanying the guidance include:

• A fact sheet in English (PDF, 4 pages) and in other languages about schools’ obligations under federal law to ensure that English learner students can participate meaningfully and equally in school
• A fact sheet in English (PDF, 2 pages) and in other languages about schools’ obligations under federal law to communicate information to limited English proficient parents in a language they can understand
• A toolkit (PDF, 11 pages) to help school districts identify English learner students, prepared by the Education Department’s Office of English Language Acquisition. This is the first chapter in a series of chapters to help state education agencies and school districts meet their obligations to English learner students

This bulletin discusses the latest and most effective practices in juvenile correctional education.

This bulletin describes innovative, phonics-based programs that have proven successful in combating functional illiteracy and its adverse aftermath within our juvenile corrections system.

The Model Programs Guide (MPG) is designed to assist practitioners and communities in implementing evidence-based prevention and intervention programs that can make a difference in the lives of children and communities. The MPG database of evidence-based programs covers the entire continuum of youth services from prevention through sanctions to reentry. The MPG is a tool that offers a database of scientifically-proven programs that address a range of issues, including substance abuse, mental health, and education programs.

Posted in observance of Open Education Week, this blog post highlights the new U.S. Open Government Partnership National Action Plan (PDF, 5 pages). The plan promotes Open Educational Resources, including the availability of high-quality, low-cost digital content in our schools. The post also features information about the successful efforts of multiple federal agencies to advance Open Educational Resources. 

The Bulletin summarizes the provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and analyzes their relevance to the juvenile justice process-from intake and initial interview to institutional placement and secure confinement.

The English Learner (EL) Toolkit helps state and local education agencies help ELs by fulfilling their obligations under state law. The Toolkit has 10 chapters, one for each section of the Dear Colleague Letter (PDF, 40 pages) that outlines these obligations, and contains an overview, sample tools, and resources. 

This website serves as a “one-stop-shop” of resources, training, and technical assistance to help school-justice partnerships implement positive school discipline reforms and reduce the school-to-juvenile justice pathway. 

This policy fact sheet (PDF, 1 page) supports educators and community leaders as they work to protect all students, including Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Muslim, Arab, Sikh, and South Asian (MASSA) students, from discrimination and to create safe and supportive learning environments. 

This report (PDF, 40 pages) describes the findings from “Combating Religious Discrimination Today,” a community engagement initiative designed to promote religious freedom and challenge religious discrimination. The report provides an overview of what was shared at several roundtables held across the country with diverse stakeholders, including religious leaders, civil rights organizations, and community members. 

This podcast series was produced by the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice with OJJDP’s School-Justice Partnership Program. It explores the challenges that parents and other caregivers of youth with behavioral health needs face regarding school, and how effective family and youth engagement can help overcome these challenges. 

This brief (PDF, 11 pages) describes personalized learning plans as a high school dropout prevention strategy and provides information on their purpose, prevalence, and implementation in schools.