Mississippi Department of Human Services

The Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) is a state agency of Mississippi, headquartered in Jackson. The department operates the state's family services.

Division of Youth Services

The Division of Youth Services (DYS) operates juvenile correctional facilities. One, Oakley Training School, is open, while Columbia Training School has been closed. The two training schools are apart from one another.426 F. 2d 269 - Montgomery v. Oakley Training School
" United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. May 6, 1970. Retrieved on August 9, 2010. "There are two juvenile reform schools in Mississippi: Oakley Training School, which was all-black and Columbia Training School, which was all-white. Both schools accommodated both boys and girls. The two schools are 125 miles apart. Children are assigned to the schools by the state's juvenile judges."

As of 2003 the majority of children committed to the training schools were non-violent offenders. Originally a judge could order child to attend a training school for minor offenses, up to and, including felony charges. On July 1, 2010, new legislation states that only a child who commits a felony or a child who commits three or more misdemeanors could be sentenced to go to a training school. Male juveniles who engage in serious or repeat behaviors and are certified as adults may be asked to go to the Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility, a privately operated facility of the Mississippi Department of Corrections in Walnut Grove, Mississippi. David M. Halfbinger of ''The New York Times'' said in 2003 that the MDHS juvenile correctional facilities "look more like rural community colleges -- low-slung, cinder-block buildings scattered across sun-baked meadows, ringed by chain-link fencing -- than the prisons they effectively are."Halbfinger, David M. "Care of Juvenile Offenders In Mississippi Is Faulted." ''The New York Times''. September 1, 2003
1
Retrieved on August 9, 2010.

In early 2020, the state auditor’s office arrested John Davis, the former director of the agency and a number of others in what was described as a widespread fraud scheme that diverted aid for the poor into personal profit.

Oakley Youth Development Center

The Oakley Youth Development Center, formerly the Oakley Training School (OTS), is located in Oakley in unincorporated Hinds County.Division of Youth Services
." Mississippi Department of Human Services. Retrieved on July 1, 2010. "2375 Oakley Road , Raymond, MS 39154." Oakley has a capacity of 150 students. Oakley Training School, also known as the Mississippi Youth Correctional Complex (MYCC), is located on a plot of land surrounded by agricultural fields; the State of Mississippi states that the complex is about a 30-minute commute from Jackson.CRIPA Investigation of Oakley and Columbia Training Schools in Raymond and Columbia, Mississippi
." United States Department of Justice. June 19, 2003. 2 (2/48). Retrieved on July 21, 2010.

Columbia Training School

MDHS owns the Columbia Training School, located in unincorporated Marion County, near Columbia, in southern Mississippi. The state estimates that Columbia is a two and one half hour commute from the school to Gulfport.CRIPA Investigation of Oakley and Columbia Training Schools in Raymond and Columbia, Mississippi
." United States Department of Justice. June 19, 2003. 3-4 (3-4/48). Retrieved on July 21, 2010. Columbia is located between Hattiesburg and McComb. The Columbia Training School is located on over of land. The unfenced complex is surrounded by farmland. Grantier Architecture designed a addition and renovation of the school.

On Wednesday June 11, 2008, the final 11 girls at the facility were transferred to another facility in Oakley.Last Eleven Girls Removed from Columbia Training School
" Mississippi Department of Human Services at '' WJTV''. June 11, 2008. Updated on January 15, 2009. Retrieved on August 10, 2010. The state had paroled the other 26 remaining girls into community-based programs. On June 30, 2008, the Columbia campus was closed. The state closed Columbia because of a desire to save money and concerns about the operation of the facility. When Columbia was open, Oakley took boys ages 15–18, while Columbia took boys 10-14 and girls 10-18.Institutional Programs and Services
" Mississippi Department of Human Services. Retrieved on July 21, 2010. Before desegregation, Columbia housed White children of both sexes; the desegregation plan around the 1970s required Columbia to house girls of all races and boys under 15 years of age of all races. Officials stated that they would like for Columbia to be transformed into a drug treatment center.

References

External links

Mississippi Department of Human Services

SPLC Works to Improve Mississippi Juvenile Justice
- Southern Poverty Law Center
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CRIPA Investigation of Oakley and Columbia Training Schools in Raymond and Columbia, Mississippi
" - United States Department of Justice

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Juvenile detention centers in the United States
State agencies of Mississippi
State corrections departments of the United States