Janet Ibru: The Growing Need for Juvenile Rehabilitation

1. Janet Ibru: The Growing Need for
Juvenile Rehabilitation

2. Juvenile rehabilitation aims to alter the
behaviors and thought patterns that lead
people to commit crimes. Rehabilitation
differs significantly from incarceration, which
focuses on punishing rather than reforming
offenders. Increasing numbers of juveniles
face charges as adults and serve sentences
in jails and prisons rather than participating in
rehabilitation programs. Unfortunately, jails
and prisons tend to reinforce negative
behaviors rather than addressing their root
causes. In these settings, juvenile offenders
may learn from adult offenders, which in turn
reinforces their identity as a criminal.

3. In juvenile rehabilitation, adolescents engage
in various programs designed to reintegrate
them with the community, and they learn life
skills that empower them to avoid continuing
down old paths. Many programs encourage
the participation of parents and guardians.
Together, these programs teach individuals to
become role models for juvenile offenders.
With support and rehabilitation, young
offenders can avoid a life centered on
criminal behavior.

4. Janet Ibru served on the Board of Directors of
The Urban Passage, Inc., in Alexandria,
Virginia, an organization that works with
juvenile offenders. She also held secretarial
and treasurer duties at the organization.