Dr. Erin Espinosa joins reFRAMED Podcast Host, Emily Morehead, LPC, to talk teen girls in our juvenile justice system. Girls in institutions are three times higher rate trauma than boys which predicts a longer stay. Watch and listen to their conversation.
We are striving to make an impact in our world through creating conversations about topics that are important to you and yours.
Our Guest:
Erin M. Espinosa, PhD, joined National Council on Crime & Delinquency in 2019 as a senior researcher. Prior to joining NCCD, she served as the Director of the Texas Center of the Institute for Innovation and Implementation out of the University of Maryland’s School of Social Work, and as a consultant for the Child, Adolescent, and Family Branch’s (CAFB) Children’s Mental Health Initiative (CMHI) of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). She began her career in social justice practice as a case manager at an all-girls juvenile justice facility and then served as a juvenile probation officer before moving on to the state juvenile justice agency in Texas.
In her more than 20 years working in and researching child- and family-serving systems at the local, state, and national levels, Erin has published widely, presented research findings, conducted trainings, provided technical assistance, and undertaken or directed a wide range of implementation- and research-related efforts in juvenile justice and children’s mental health. Her primary research interest is in using and translating data to bridge research to policy and practice.
Show Notes:
In this episode, we talked about:
- The number one thing that teen girls said they needed was a safe place to stay vs. the treatment providers saying the girls needed more treatment.
- Girls run away for a reason. They run to a place that's safe -- even if we don't think it is.
- Because the system feels like they need to provide more treatment and protection (especially to prevent pregnancy), we try to put them in an institution that doesn't prepare them for adulthood.
- Erin's new research is looking at girl dissidents and gang activity in the Rio Grande Valley.
- Boys are more likely to go to the RTCs and girls are more likely to go to the Institutions at almost 4 times the higher rate for violation of probation.
- We need to work on enhancing our treatment providers with more training and enhanced skills on helping these girls with trauma that are in the system.
- The average home re-placement in foster care is 8 to 10 different homes.
- Providers on the front lines need to actually care and have a high empathy level.
- Psychology Today
- Erin Espinosa, 510-874-5531, eespinosa@nccdglobal.net
The reFRAMED podcast is created to educate, encourage, and inspire parents and professionals that have a love for children and want to meet their needs.
Where to subscribe: iTunes/Apple Podcast | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Stitcher | TuneIn | Spotify | RSS
Help Us Spread the Word! Please let your social media followers know about this podcast.
If you enjoyed this episode of the reFRAMED podcast, please head over to iTunes, leave a rating, write a review, and subscribe.
Now that you've heard our podcast, do you have further questions? Please email us at podcast@gladney.org and let us know.
