Juvenile Protective Association
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Juvenile Protective Association (JPA) is a private
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
agency devoted to protecting children from abuse and neglect by providing intervention and treatment services to families in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
.


History

Founded in Chicago in 1901 by
Jane Addams Laura Jane Addams (September 6, 1860 May 21, 1935) was an American settlement activist, reformer, social worker, sociologist, public administrator, and author. She was an important leader in the history of social work and women's suffrage ...
and her colleagues, the
Juvenile Court Committee Juvenile may refer to: *Juvenile status, or minor (law), prior to adulthood * Juvenile (organism) *Juvenile (rapper) (born 1975), American rapper * ''Juvenile'' (2000 film), Japanese film * ''Juvenile'' (2017 film) *Juvenile (greyhounds), a greyh ...
(JCC) provided the first probation officers for the first Juvenile Court in the United States before this became a government function. In 1907 the JCC merged with the Juvenile Protection League, an organization devoted to preventing juvenile delinquency, and renamed itself the Juvenile Protective Association. From 1907 until the 1940s, JPA engaged in many studies examining such subjects as racism, child labor and exploitation, drug abuse and prostitution in Chicago and their effects on child development. Beginning in the 1940s under the leadership of
Jessie Binford Jessie Florence Binford (1876 Marshalltown, Iowa-1966), aka “the conscience of Chicago”, was a social worker who worked closely with Jane Addams at Hull House. Binford was the founder and executive director of the Juvenile Protective Associati ...
, JPA chose to concentrate on direct service and to help the most resistant clients with a strong outreach (home visiting) component. When Lewis Penner became executive director of JPA in 1952, he reformed the organization by hiring social workers holding professional master's degrees and focusing more on research and casework over social reform. In the 1960s, JPA participated with other child welfare agencies in establishing the
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) is the code department of the Illinois state government responsible for child protective services. , Marc Smith is the acting Director of Children and Family Services. The DCFS Offic ...
(DCFS). In 1990, JPA made a strategic decision to focus on serving high-risk and vulnerable families with young children (age 0-5) to reduce the risk of maltreatment and provide help to vulnerable children early in life and maximize the impact of intervention on their developmental trajectory.


Mission

As a social welfare agency, JPA's mission is to protect and to promote the healthy development of children whose social and emotional well-being, or whose physical safety is in jeopardy either because of neglect or abuse at home or because of inimical interferences in the neighborhood and, when necessary, to provide for the rehabilitation of families for such children.


Services and activities

Under the leadership of executive director Richard Calica, JPA offers psychological treatment to children and families with a history of abuse and neglect and to those at risk of falling into a cycle of abuse. The organization also offers consultation and training services to other public and private social service organizations, including the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services ( DCFS). Its research department contributes to knowledge about child welfare and is currently participating in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services's longitudinal study about the effects of different environments on child development, especially when children have been exposed to violence, poverty, substance abuse, or neglect."Research and Publication." ''Juvenile Protective Association''. 2006. Juvenile Protective Association. Sept 13 2007
juvenile.org
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References


External links

* * {{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in Chicago