A Call for Reform of Maryland's Training Schools

    "- I 

0 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND, INC. 
10 Columbus Circle, New York, N.Y. 10019 • 586-8397 

A CALL FOR REFORM 

OF 

MARYIAND'S TRAINING SCHOOLS 

a report by 

The Task Force on Juvenile Justice 

a n d 

The Division of Legal Information and Conununity Service 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 

February 1973 

Contributions are deductib'le for U.S. income tax purposes 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 

INTRODOCTION. 1 4 

O\lER'7IEW· • ••••••••••••••••••••• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - 18 

THE TRAINING SCHOOLS: 
PROBLEMS .AND PRACTICES ••••••• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 63 

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ••••••••••• . •. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i iv 

RECOMMENDATIONS • ••••• · ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• v x 

0 



INTRODUCTION 

The Task Force on Juvenile Justice was formed in November 

1972, by a group of black citizens in Baltimore, Maryland, because 

of a conunon concern for the problems of juveniles who are in 

conflict with the law and who are in need of better services to deal 

with their problems. The Task Force members work in various 

capacities with children in that city, i.~., social service agencies, 

educational programs, medical facilities, community organizations 

and court related programs which deal with the problems of young 

people. 

The Division of Legal Information and Conununity Service 

() of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. is also deeply 

concerned with the rights of children, particularly black children, 

and is seeking means to determine whether their rights are being 

violated by the manner in which courts and administrative agencies 

deal with children who are in conflict with the law. 

This common cause brought together the Task Force on Juvenile 

Justice and the Legal Defense Fund. Their first joint objective was 

to visit four training schools operated by the State of Maryland 

to observe and assess the effectiveness of the institutions' programs 

in returning productive citizens to the city and its neighborhoods 

and to determine what effective progr ams could be implemented and 



( 

0 

what resources could be utilized to reduce the incidence of juvenile 

delinquency in Baltimore. 

The Task Force visited the training schools in November and 

December of 1972. During each visit, the Task Force met with the 

superintendent of the training school and other staff members to 

collect basic information about the children, programs, facilities, 

and ·the medical services. Members of the Team then split into groups 

to vi'sit various parts of the institution, particularly the cottages 

and staff who have the most contact with children. Children were 

interviewed at each of the training schools. 

Because the Task Force members are deeply involved with 

children in Baltimore communities, they are keenly aware of the 

inadequacies of the institutions of the juvenile justice system, 

especially the training schools, which are not helping children who 

are in trouble. The members of the Task Force feel the brunt of 

the children's; problems. Many youngsters who a.re adjudicated 

delinquents by the juvenile court and committed to institutions 

return to their communities with their problems unresolved. They fear 

the system's failure to correct the problems at an early age may lead 

to further criminal acts when the child matures. In fact, they have 

seen many children who have passed through Maryland's training 

schools later become the inmates of the adult prisons. The System's 

- 2 -



0 

failure has convinced them that better solutions to children's 

needs must be found at the community and institutional level. 

This report is based on background research, information 

and observations collected during visits. 

- 3 -



0 

The Task Force consists of the following Baltimore 

citizens: 

Marian Banfield - Family and Children's Society 

Frieda Coleman - Family and Children's Society 

Henri Ann Daniels - Baltimore Department of Social 

services 

Raymond Harcum - Community Learning center 

Rudel Martin - Baltimore Welfare Rights organizatio n 

Madeline Murphy - Columnist, Afro-American Newspapers 

Norman Reeves - Ralph Young Junior High School 

Dr. Oakley Saunders - pediatrician 

In addition, the Task Force was accompanied by 

two staff members of the Legal Defense Fund, Phyllis 

McClure and Ann Wagner. 

- 4 -



0 

OVERVIEW 

Juveniles committed to the four training schools fall into 

two categories - delinquents and Children In Need of Supervision 

(CINS). 

Under Maryland law, a child under the age of 18 is a 

delinquent if he has committed a violation of law which would be a 

crime if committed by an adult.* · According to institutional 

authorities, most juvenile crimes are theft, assault, or possession 

of drugs. A "child in need of supervision 11 (CINS) is a child who has 

committed an offense which is applicable only to children. A CINS 

is one who has been determined to be habitually a truant from school; 

habitually ungovernable or disobedient; beyond the control of his 

parents; likely to endanger himself or others; or one who requires 

guidance, treatment or rehabilitation.** 

In addition, children who have been charged as delinquents 

or CINS are detained at training schools and other detention centers 

until their hearing (or trial). The legal limit for this detention 

is 30 days. 

* Annotated Code of Maryland, Article 26, § 26(g) (h) 

** Annotated Code of Maryland, Article 26, § 26(i) 

- 5 -



0 

Thirty-seven percent (37%) of all juvenile cases in 

Maryland are reported from Baltimore. In 1971, there were 8,780 

juvenile cases in Baltimore, and of this number 75.6% were delinquency 

cases and 14% were CINS cases. 

Of particular concern is the disproportionate number of 

black children and Baltimore City children who are committed to 

training schools. Throughout the State of Maryland, referrals to 

juvenile courts are 7C1'/o white, yet 54% of the commitments to training 

schools are black. At each training school, 50-7C1'/o of the children 

are from Baltimore. 

The training schools operated by the Department of Juvenile 

Services (DJS) are only one phase of the juvenile justice system 

in Maryland. The Maryland Department of Juvenile Services provides 

juvenile court services throughout the state in the eight judicial 

circuits. Each judicial circuit has a judge sitting in Juvenile 

Court either full or part-time. Baltimore City is a separate 

circuit with a full-time judge and seven masters. These judges and 

masters hear all cases concerning juvenile matters. 

The training schools must accept whomever the juvenile 

court judges send to them. Juvenile court judges generally commit 

youngsters to the Department of Juvenile Services which, in turn, 

places children in one of the training schools or forestry camps 

depending on his age, sex, and whether he is a delinquent or CINS . 

- 6 -



under Maryland law, a delinquent child is committed for an inde-

terminate period, not to exceed three years. However, judges 

sometimes commit children to a specific institution and at 

times for a determinate sentence. Although juveniles are sen-

tenced for an indeterminate period, the average length of stay 

among the four training schools ranges from six to eight months. 

There are, however, children who remain in training schools up 

to two years because there is no other place for them to go. 

Juvenile court judges have (and often exercise) the 

d i scretion to commit a child as a delinquent or a CINS. Since 

the delinquent label places a greater stigma upon a child, the 

judge ' s decision can have the effect of marking a child for 

life. This discretion is further used to avoid sending white 

c:J children to majority black training schools. Victor Cullen, 

the training school for male CINS, is 60% white, while the two 

t raining schools for delinquent boys are 60% black (Boys 

Village) and 78% black (Maryland Training School). 

The juvenile court services provided by the Depart­

ment include intake, probation, and aftercare. The intake 

process is the child's first point of contact with the crim-

inal justice system. The intake responsibilities consist of 

handling referrals of children by the police, the Department 

of Social services, the schools, or b y parents. The Department 

determines the legal sufficiency of the complaint against the 

child and determines whether a forma l pe tition should be filed 

for a hearing in Juvenile court or whether a case should be 

- 7 -



0 

informally handled without court proceedings. Intake workers 

screen complaints and divert some childre n f~om appearing before 

the court~ In Baltimore, approximately 24% of the complaints against 

children are screened out. These children may be referred to 

another agency or put on informal probation for 45 days. 

Probation services are provided for children who have been 

adjudicated delinquent or CINS but who are determined not to require 

institutionalization. 

The after care staff is assigned to children in institutions 

in order to plan for their release and to provide supervision when 

the child has returned home. 

In addition to these court services, the Department of 

Juvenile Services contracts with various private institutions and 

foster homes to provide care and supervision for children (known as 

purchase of care). Purchase of care is presently a limited alternative 

to confining juveniles in training schools, and 68°fe of all children 

under purchase of care are white. Since 1968, the number of. juveniles 

in purchase of care placements increased from 116 to 453. The Depart­

ment also operates three group homes, all located in Baltimore. 

The four training schools operated by the Department are 

Victor Cullen, Montrose School for Girls, Boys Village, and Maryland 

- 8 -



( 

Training School for Boys. In addition there are five forestry camps · 

and two detention facilities - Maryland Children's Center and T. S. 

Waxter Children's Center. 

Confinement of juveniles to training schools is on the 

increase. On November 1, 1972, there were 1,182 committed and 

detained youngsters in the four training schools. The average daily 

population in November, 1972 was 1,073, and increase of 140 children 

over the average daily population of 933 in November, 1971. The 

Department projects future increases in institutional population. 

Maryland law authorizes the Department of Juvenile Services 

Q to operate facilities "as may be needed properly to diagnose, care 

for, train, educate, and rehabilitate children in need of these 

s ervices."* The goals of the Juvenile Court Services Division of 

the Department of Juvenile Services are: 

"to provide for the care, protection and wholesome 

mental and physical development of children, to 

remove from children committing delinquency acts 

the taint of criminality and the consequences of 

criminal behavior and to substitute a program of 

treatment, training and rehabilitation; to place 

* Annotated Code of Maryland, Article 52 A § 11. 

- 9 -



a child in a wholesome family environment 

whenever possible; and to separate a child from 

its parents only when necessary for his welfare 

or in the interests of public safety."** 

The 1972 Fiscal Year budget of the Department of Juvenile 

Services was $19,279,452. Of this total, $11,364,651 was spent on 

all institutions, $2,315,750 was spent on community and residential 

programs, and $4,793,753 was spent on court services. 

Budget expenditures have increased in recent years, as the following 

Q table shows : 

Fiscal Probation & Community & 
Year Institutions Court Services Residential Total --

1969 7,344,951 2,130,139 380, 242 10,313,549 
1970 8,539,963 2, 686, 603 651,649 12,420,092 
1971 10, 222, 861 3,755,940 1,439,488 16,016,908 
1972 11, 364, 651 4,793,753 2,315,750 19,279,452 

** Maryland Department of Juvenile Services , Programs and Facilities, 
14 (January, 1972). 

- 10 -



0 

The four training schools are located in rural areas of 

the state isolated from the neighborhoods from which many of the 

children come. 

Three of the institutions are for boys and one is for girls. 

Boys Village and Maryland Training School are for boys who have been 

adjudicated delinquents. Victor Cullen serves boys who are CINS. 

Montrose, the training school for girls, serves both CINS and 

delinquents. ·The training schools also are used for detention of 

children awaiting their hearing (trial) before the juvenile court. 

Except for Maryland Training School, the detained children who have 

not been judged guilty of any offense are mixed in with the children 

who have been committed by the juvenile courts .. 

Children confined in these training schools range in age 

from nine to 18. A majority of them are black youngsters from 

Baltimore. They typically come from poor and broken homes; they are 

academically retarded and behind grade level; and they have had 

previous contact with the Department of Juvenile Services. 

Within each institution, there is a wide variation of children. 

A few are repeated juvenile offenders. Some are children with 

organic brain damage, severe psychological and emotional problems, 

or mental handicaps. Other children at the training school simply 

need supervision, guidance, and a stable family situation in which 

- 11 -



to mature, and no foster home or purchase of care institution has 

accepted them. Children confined under the CINS statute at Victor 

Cullen and Montrose have committed no crime, yet they are 

institutionalized and treated no differently from children who have 

been found guilty of a crime. 

Still others are being detained for their trial or being 

detained because their parents have not been locat~d. There have 

been instances in which a child has been missing from home for two 

weeks before he was found in a training s~hool. 

The reason for such a wide variation of children in the 

() training schools is that juvenile judges have wide discretion in 

committing and detaining children, and there is no uniform evaluation 

and diagnostic process to screen children prior to commitment. Some 

children come to the training schools after detention at Maryland 

Children's Center where they are diagnosed. Other children come with 

no complete diagnosis. Children may have a social investigation 

done by the probation or intake staff, but this report may not 

have diagnosed adequately the particular kind of care which the 

child requires. Without uniform screening, the training school knows 

little about the children it receives, yet it is expected to meet 

a variety of needs. 

- 12 -



( 

0 

According to a recent research report* on the Maryland 

Trai ning School for Boys, 46% of the sample of youngsters admitted 

had no record of any previous psychological, psychiatric, or 

neurological examination. In some cases, precommitment examinations 

were not recent, and in other cases the results of previous 

examinations w~re not available to the training school. The report 

concluded that "in a considerable proportion of the cases the boy was 

sent to the Training School without professional evaluation of the 

psychological facto~s operative . . . at the time of admission in 

order to plan appropriate treatment for the boy." 

The screening that is done by the Department of Juvenile 

Services does not permit the court to determine whether a child 

has severe psychological, emotional or mental problems which require 

treatment and institutionalization, or whether the child simply needs 

supervision and guidance without the necessity for institutionaliza-

tion. Even if the court did have a comprehensive diagnosis, there 

is a very limited number of non-institutional programs in which 

children can be placed in the state. 

* Research Department, Sheppard and Enoch Pratt Hospital, Population 
and Process Characteristics of the Maryland Training School for 
Boys, 1970-71, 18 (November, 1972 ) . 

- 13 -



0 

The training schools get children who are repeated 

offenders, children who have no stable home, children who can not 

be placed in foster homes or purchase of care facilities, or 

children whom judges commit to pacify community pressures to remove 

them from society. The training schools become institutions for 

children for whom our sQciety. has no place. 

The following section presents basic information about each 

of the four training schools. 

- 14 -



( 

LOCATION: 

SUPERINTENDENT: 

FUNCTION: 

"POPULATION: 

0 

STAFF: 

BUDGET: 

BOYS VILLAGE 

Chelt enham (Prince Georges County) 

Robert J. Sauls 

for delinquent boys between the 
ages of 10 and 15, including boys 
detained for court hearings. 

total on rolls 

total on grounds 

detained 

committed 

racial canposition 
6-0'/o black 
40'/o white 

percentage from Baltimore 70'/o 

percentage overcrowding 2.5% 

total number all staff 

racial composition 90'/o black 

total $2,319,452 

per capita $ 11,597 

- 1 5 -

274 

204 

56 

148 

186 



( 

0 

MARYIAND TRAINING SCHOOL FOR BOYS 

LOCATION: 

SUPERINTENDENT: 

FUNCTION: 

POPUI.J\TION: 

STAFF: 

BUDGET : 

Lock Raven Dam (Baltimore County) 

Robert J . Harrington 

for delinquent boys, both 
detained and conunitted, between 
the ages of 16 and 18. 

total on rolls 

total on grou_nds 

detained 

committed 

racial composition 
78% black 
22% white 

percentage from Baltimore 
70-75% 

320 

172 

52 

120 

percentage overcrowding 27.9'~ 

total number of staff 250 

racial composition 52% black 

total $2,838,023 

per capita $ 12 I 900 

- 16 -



LOCATION: 

SUPERINTENDENT: 

FUNCTION : 

POPULATION: 

0 

STAFF: 

BUDGET: 

VICTOR CULLEN 

Sabillisville (Frederick County) 
in the Catoctin Mountains 

James M. Dean 

for male CINS between the ages 
.of 9 and 17 

total on rolls 184 

total on grounds 176 

racial composition 
40>.ki black 
6 O>.ki white 

percentage from Baltimore 52% 

percentage overcrowding 32 . 3'.k. 

total number of staff 161 

racial composition 94% white 

total $1,682, 894 

per capita $ 10,600 

- 17 -



( 

LOCATION: 

SUPERINl'ENDENT : 

FUNCTION: 

POPUI.ATION: 

0 

STAFF: 

BUDGET: 

MONTROSE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS 

Reisterstown (Baltimore County) 

Leonard F. Gmeiner 

for delinquent girls, both detained 
and committed. Most girls are 
between the ages of 13 and 18. 

total on rolls 

total on grounds 

detained 

committed 

CINS 

delinquents 

racial composition 
51% black 
49°,,.b white 

275 

205 

24 

181 . 

185 

20 

percentage from Baltimore 66% 

percentage overcrowding 10.6% 

total number of staff 188 

racial composition 54% black 

total $2,174,474 

per capita $ 10,872 

- 18 -



0 

THE TRAINING SCHOOLS: PROBLEMS AND PRACTICES 

Physical 
Facilities 

Each training school is organized on the cottage 

system. Each cottage houses 20-25 children and 

it is· in the cottage that the child spends most of his time. The 

cottage dormitory is a large room with rows of beds, all with uni-

form bed covers and no sign of individual possessions. Some cot-

tages have private rooms which are barren, except for an iron bed, 

small metal cabinet, and very few signs of decoration which would 

provide identity for children. 

The recreation room in all the cottages typically contains 

a television set, a pool and ping-pong table, perhaps a small book 

shelf and some furniture. The toilet area is one large room with 

open showers, and a row of toilets (frequently without seats), none 

of which are enclosed in stalls. Personal possessions are kept in 

open lockers. There is virtually no possibility for privacy except 

at Montrose where each girl has a private room. 

Front doors to the cottages are locked at Montrose. At the 

other training schools, most cottages are not locked. Windows 

are covered with heavy metal screening. Individual rooms can be 

locked from the outside so that they can be used to confine a 

student for discipline purposes. 

- 19 -



General 
Organization 
and Routine 

The daily routine in all cottages is virtually 

identical . Boys and girls arise between 6:00 and 

7:00 a.m. They make their beds, clean up, change clothes, wash 

and prepare for breakfast. After breakfast, there is a break un-

til 9:30 a.m. at which time students go to school for half a day, 

do their work detail, or simply sit around the cottage doing chores 

or watching television. Children leave the cottage in the morning 

and afternoon to attend school or vocational classes or to do 

work details. They return for lunch and again in mid afternoon. 

For most of the remainder of the day they sit indoors watching 

television, playing pool, writing letters, smoking, reading or 

talking with other students or cottage staff. A few students were 

observed engaged in sports during this period, but for the most 

part they remained in the cottage unless a staff member was free 

to take them to the gym. With the exception of Victor Cullen 

where students eat in a central cafeteria, all meals are eaten in 

the cottage. Bed time is around 8:30-9:00 p.m. for girls and 

9:30-10:00 p.m. for boys. 

At Maryland Training School and Boys Village, some students 

might be permitted to play football in frort.of the cottage in the 

afternoon. However, the girls at Montrose had to remain in their 

rooms (when they were in the cottage) and could not come out of 

the room for any reason without permission of the staff member 

on duty . By contrast, boys were allowed to move around the cottage, 

- 20 -



in the dining area and recreation room. When children move out 

of the cottage to other buildings, they are generally moved in 
I 

groups under the watchful eye of a staff member. 

The single greatest impression of cottage life in the after-

noon and evening was the feeling of confinement and the absence 

of orgµnized purposeful activity. Students commented on their 

own boredom, lack of activity and imprisonment. 

Work Routine Students are entirely responsible for the main-

tenance of their cottage, and in addition they 

are. assigned work details in the administration, school, central 

kitchen, laundry, vocational shops and other buildings. Extra 

work in the cottage can be assigned as punishment which may explain 

0 the clean and well scrubbed appearance of all cottages. 

Boys at Maryland Training School and Boys Village may earn 

money working in the laundry, kitchen, maintenance or off grounds. 

At Maryland Training School the wages are 10 cents an hour, at 

Boys Village a dollar a week. The superintendent of the Maryland 

Training School reports that while about 25% of the boys work, 

most boys decline these jobs because of the low pay. A few boys 

may have the opportunity to work o f f grounds in nearby small 

businesses, especially franchised food outlets. At the Maryland 

Training School, 20 boys were worki ng off grounds for $1.60 per hour. 

Orientation When a student first arrives at the institution, 

he is assigned to an orientation cottage where he 

- 21 -



0 

may remain for a few days or for several weeks, depending on 

the institution. During this time, the student is acquainted 

with the routine of the institution and duties expected of him, 

and the institutional staff evaluatesthe student. This evaluation 

consists of recording facts about the individual and his family, 

giving IQ and reading tests, evaluating the student's initial 

adjustment and behavior, and providing a physical examination. 

The purpose of this evaluation is to decide which cottage to place 

the boy or girl in. 

The orientation cottage serves the purpose of the training 

school in two ways. The first purpose of orientation is to 

acclimatize the child to the institution, to impress upon him not 

only the rules and regulations but more importantly to mold him 

to the overall penal purpose of the institution. Secondly, the 

orientation period permits the training school to evaluate the 

child in terms of the institution's own program. The child's be­

havior, educational or vocational aptitude, age, size and maturity 

are judged for purposes of placing him in the training school's 

program. 

The orientation period does not appear to be used to evaluate 

the child's individual needs or problems and to design a program 

to meet his needs. In part, this is so because of the institu­

tion's limited ability to deal with the wide variety of problems 

which the children may have. If a child does have some 

- 22 -



( 

0 

emotional, psychological, mental problem or a learning handicap, 

that problem may not be identified during the orientation period 

or treated during his confinement. The training schools simply 

do not have sufficient psychiatric or psychological staff to 

screen all children, develop specific "rehabilitation" programs 

to meet individual needs, and follow up with treatment and periodic 

reevaluations. 

One of the most inadequate aspects of the training schools 

is the lack of psychiatric, psychological and neurological screen­

ing for specific defects. The training schools are not equipped 

to do a sophisticated and significant diagnostic testing. The 

Task Force found no evidence that the regular institutional 

staff at the training schools is properly qualified or trained 

to do this kind of screening. 

Psychiatric and psychologica.l counseling appears to be 

limited to those children identified by institutional staff as 

exhibiting acute or aggressive behavior. The purpose of the 

psychiatrist or psychologist appears to be to evaluate a boy or 

girl so that the training school staff can work .with the child. 

The staff members who then work with the child have no specific 

training to deal with any diagnosed problems. Psychiatrists 

and psychologists appear to be used primarily for screening and 

emergency services and not for ongoing evaluations and follow up. 

The psychiatrist and psychologist also do testing and may be 

- 23 -



0 

involved in limited staff training, but the Task Forc.e was un-

able to determine the nature and scope of this staff training 

and whether it properly qualifies\ staff members to deal with 

c~ildren. At Montrose such staff training is limited to once a 

week. 

Lack of funds for sufficient psychiatric and psychological 

assistance appears to be the major reason for this deficiency in 

diagnostic screening and treatment. For example, at Montrose, 

funds for this professional assistance comprise only 2% to 3% 

of the total operating budget of the institution. In addition 

to the money in Montrose's budget for psychiatrists and psy-

chologists, the training school has the services of two volunteer 

ps·ychologists and one part- time psychiatrist paid for from another 

source. At Montrose approximately 10-15 referrals are made to 

psychologist every month; however, the superintendent reports 

that not all of these referrals may actually be seen for diagnosis. 

Cottage 
Assignment 

Cottage placement is typically homogeneous on the 

basis of academic retardation, agressive or 

passive behavior, maturity and other factors. Some cottages serve 

as honor cottages to which students are gradually promoted on the 

basis of good behavior. Montrose has two cottages for girls who 

work off campus in jobs or training programs. One cottage at 

Maryland Training School is reser ved exclusively for boys who 

are preparing for their high school equivalency examination. 

- 24 -



( 

0 

Victor Cullen has two cottages for vocationally-oriented boys. 

Other cottages are set aside for disciplinary purposes. 

Harford Cottage at Maryland Traing School is an adjustment cot­

tage where a boy may be locked up for 15 to 60 days depending 

on the number of infractions he has committed in the institution. 

Boys who are AWOL from the institution are also confined in this 

cottage. Within the unit, boys are locked in their room for up 

to five day~ for punishment or for their own protection. 

The cottage staff submits progress reports and keeps a log 

but does not participate in decisions about how long a boy remains 

in t he cottage or remains locked in his room. Those decisions 

are made by staff who visit the cottage periodically. During 

a v isit to Harford Cottage , boys were observed watching tele­

vision , shooting basketballs, playing cards or ping-pong. One 

boy was brought in handcuffed and immediately locked in a room 

because it was believed that he was engaging in homosexual activi­

t i es that would be disruptive to the group. 

Boys in Harford Cottage do participate in educational 

activities in.the morning, but for the rest of the day they have 

nothing to do . The arts and craft program was eliminated due to 

budget cuts, and group meetings wi th clergymen were discontinued 

because of lack of interest. The r e is an exercise yard attached 

to the cottage, but it has not been used for some time because 

boys were escaping o ver the f e nce. The yard is used only when 

- 25 -



( 

0 

a security patrol is available, and apparently it is available 

very inf requent.ly. 

One · of the most depressing places visited at any of the 

institutions was the adjustment unit at Victor Cullen. The 

small, crowded and securely locked unit contains CINS boys who 

are either chronic AWOLs {runaways), "non-groupers" {those who 

cannot cope with the regular program) or those being punished 

for some infraction of the rules. The adjustment unit also 

serves as an orientation cottage. Children new to the institution 

are mixed in with "problem" children. Originally, the unit was 

established for AWOLs, but there were not enough runaway children, 

so additional uses were . found for this secure facility. 

At the time the Task Force visited the adjustment unit, 

there were seventeen boys there. The rooms were drab, the furni­

ture rundown, the surro.undings barren. There were no meaningful 

activities going on and there were too many boys for the size of 

the unit. Boys and adult staff were standing around or sitting 

watching television. The children complained that there was 

nothing to occupy their time. All meals are eaten within the 

unit and the boys are sometimes bused to the gym for exercise. 

The main door is locked at all times and boys are totally isolated 

for 1-2 weeks and sometimes longer . 

In the adjustment unit, the only activity was several boys 

engaged in school work under the supervision of a teacher. The 

- 26 -



( 

0 

boys were working at tables in a .small room and in the hallway. 

There were no educational materials evident. In fact, the 

teacher commented that she could not use the equipment from the 

regular school unless she made special arrangements which were 

difficult to make. Therefore, only infrequently could she make 

use of special educational materials and equipment. 

The essential'_ purpose of Victor CUllen's adjustment unit 

is punishment. It is a dumping ground for those boys the institu­

tion cannot cope with. This is especially so for those boys who 

have been placed there because they refused to submit to the 

ins titution's pressure to conform to the peer group therapy 

program which is employed at Victor Cullen and which will be dis­

cussed later. 

A boy may be sent to the adjustment unit for no violation 

other than the rule of conformity. Moreover, the same boys tend 

to go back to the adjustment unit time and time again. Among the 

boys interviewed was a 13 year old youngster from Baltimore who 

had been in the adjustment unit five weeks. He had previously 

been in the adjustment unit eight times in the course of ten 

months at Victor Cullen. He admitte d that he had a temper and 

got into many fights, but no one was helping him work out his 

problem or probe the reasons for his behavior. Indeed, it is 

possible that his almost constant confinement in small, barren, 

and boring quarters may have exacerbated his aggressive tendencies. 

- 27 -



( 

0 

There was no evidence that any effort was being under-

taken to work with the boys to provide special guidance and 

counseling to deal with the problem that caused the boys to be 

punished in the first place. 

There were no adjustment units at Boys Village or 

Montrose. 

Detention A recent survey of the Department of Juvenile 

Services reported that "Maryland has been detain-

ing many more youngsters than need be pending processing in court, 

according to good standards." Twenty-two per cent of the child-

ren arrested in the state are detained. Most children (14.6%) 

are detained in state institutions, while 7% are detained in 

local jails. Over a two-year period from 1968 to 1970, detentions 

increased 26% while arrests only increased 2.9%'.* 

The Task Force did not examine the problems of detention 

or the reasons for its increased us~but all of the institutions 

visited contained some children who were awaiting ·disposition of 

their case by the court. The Task Force had two concerns about 

the detained children in these institutions - there was no pro-

gram for these children and they were mixed in with committed 

children. 

Maryland Training School h a s three detention cottages. 

*John Howard Association, Comprehensive Long Range Master Plan, 
Department of Juvenile Serv ices State of Maryland (May 1972). 
"Good standards," according to the Howard Association report, 
are that no more than 10°/o of juveniles awaiting a hearing, 
r equire secure detention. 

- 28 -



( 

0 

One is secure, one is moderately secure and one is minimally 

secure. Detained and committed youngsters are in the same 

cottages at Boys Village and Montrose. The few detained child­

ren that come to Victor Cullen are initially placed in the ad­

justment unit. Placement in the three detention cottages at 

Maryland Training School is usually determined on the basis 

of whether the judge orders secure confinement. However, if 

the secure cottage overflows, some boys may be removed . to the 

moderately secure cottage. 

The number of children detained at Maryland Training 

School is rising due in part to the closing of a cottage at 

Maryland Children's Center, a detention and diagnostic facility. 

One staff member at Maryland Training School felt that 

some boys sent there for secure detention do not need to be 

locked up or, in fact, should not be sent to an institution at 

all. The superintendent commented that while he had the authority 

to contact the judge regarding a boy whom he felt did not need 

to be securely detained, he never exercised that authority. 

Although the detainees are in the training schools for 

a relatively brief period (the statutory limit is 30 days), they 

do not participate in ·the educational or vocational programs. 

Detained girls at Montrose spend their entire detention confined 

inside the cottages whiling away their time watching television, 

talking, playing ping-pong or sitting in their room. There are 

- 29 -



( 

0 

no special programs or services for detained children. They 

simply wait for the court to hear their case. 

Recreation Some limited attempts to provide recreation 

were noted at each of the four institutions; 

however, there was no wide range of recreational activities to 

counter the boredom and idleness which was so prevalent. There 

are some sports, a few opportunities for arts and craft, movies 

and occasional trips. One facet of the recreation program is 

dances between the gi~ls at Montrose and the boys at the other 

three institutions. This is, in fact, the only social inter­

change students are allowed. Juvenile delinquents and CINS 

are only permitted to associate with each other and not with 

their peers from their own communities or from nearby neighbor­

hoods. Thus, their isolation from the community at large is 

reinforced, and the unspoken assumption is that these youngsters 

are not "good enough" to associate with noninstitutionalized 

people of their own age. 

Students are occasionally permitted to see movies. Only 

at Boys Village did there appear to be any organized effort to 

provide a fuller recreation program. Intra-mural sports are 

conducted, there is a swimming pool on grounds, boys are 

regularly taken on off-campus trips to ball games and sights 

in nearby Washington, D.C., and federal education funds support 

summer field trips. 

- 30 -



( 

0 

Contact with 
the outside 

Children in training schools have limited con-

tact with the outside world and with their families 

through mail, visitors and occasional weekend home visits. 

One stamp a week is supplied to each child but the child 

can purchase additional stamps. Incoming mail is opened and 

searched: outgoing mail is not. The superintendent at Maryland 

Training School reported that there is not much correspondence be-

tween a boy and his family, but that communication has been in-

creased by permitting one telephone call a week. 

Visits by family and relatives are permitted once a week, 

on Sunday, but visits by boy friends and girl friends are prohibited. 

The only friendships and peer relations that are allowed to develop 

are those among institutionalized youth. This practice prevents 

contact with neighborhood friends, and reinforces a child's sense 

of isolation and punishment. 

All the training schools reported that they had attempted to 

facilitate family visits by providing bus service from downtown 

Baltimore, but that the service was discontinued because few parents 

used it. However, families who do want to visit find means to get 

to the training schools. The distance of the training schools 

from Baltimore does work a hardship on city residents which could 

be eliminated if there were community-based facilities. 

Weekend and holiday visits h ome are earned through good be-

havior or by earning points. Children look forward to going home 

for a weekend but they look forward even more to being released. 

- 31 -



( 

0 

Despite these limited contacts with family and the outside world, 

children feel very isolated and lonely which contribute to their 

sense of alienation from the community at large. 

Educational 
Program 

The typical child confined in these four insti-

tutions is severely academically retarded, failed 

by the public school system, and "turned off" by school. For 

example, the superintendent of Victor Cullen reports that 23% of 

the boys admitted to his institution cannot read or write. At 

Maryland Training School, 20-25% of the boys are estimated to be 

at the pre-primer to third grade level and 60% are three to five 

years below grade level. At Boys Village, 75% of the boys who are 

between the ages of 10 and 15 are reading at the second grade level. 

Uniformly, all four institutions claim great success in im-

proving reading skills of children during their stay at the in-

stitution. The improvement of reading scores by several grade 

levels seem to be the only educational goal of these institutions. 

The principal at Montrose said that a girl can progress a 

year and a half in grade level in six months but that there is a 

leveling off effect after the initial sharp gain. In six months 

at Maryland Training School, the principal reported that boys can 

progress four grade levels, but he acknowledged that only 10% of 

the boys actually reach this goal. Victor Cullen's superintendent 

reported that 85% of his boys retu rn to school upon release from 

the training school. 

It is difficult to evaluate the educational program at 

these institutions because the programs are in the process of 

- 32 -



( 

0 

change and because of the relatively short time (the average 

length of stay at these institutions is less than a full school 

year) the students are in the program. At Victor Cullen and 

Maryland Training School, in particular, the educational program 

is moving away from traditional classroom teaching to the use 

of .contracts between students and teachers. Class room instruc­

tion is being phased -out at Maryland Training School and teachers 

will be assigned to cottages to carry out the educational pro­

gram. Where classroom instruction is used, classes are kept 

small, teacher aides are employed, and instruction is individu­

a lized as much as possible. 

The school program in each of the institutions is certified 

by the State of Maryland and a number of the teachers are quali­

fied as special education teachers. Some of the teachers with 

whom the Task Force talked reported that while teaching child­

ren in these institutions was frequently frustrating, it could 

be more rewarding than teaching in regular public schools. 

Budget cuts have affected the educational program. 

Vacancies cannot be filled unless they are federally funded 

positions. At Maryland Training School, five teaching positions 

were recently abolished. 

Despite the claims of improved reading skills, the 

Task Force detected several problems with the educational 

program . There is little attempt to relate learning to behavior. 

- 33 -



The isolated environment of the training schools limits the 

extent to wh.i.ch l c <irning exper jcnces c a n h e re lated to the 

child's real world. A child confined to a training school does 

not know how long he will be there. His past experience with 

school has led him to believe that he is an ordained failure. 

There is no reason for him to learn in the training school. 

· When he does get out, he will, in all likelihood, return to 

the kind of school envirorunent which he previously failed. 

The institution's educational program is vocationally 

oriented. Reading and other skills are emphasized because they 

will lead to job opportunities. But youngsters know how difficult 

it is for them to get a job in their neighborhoods and they 

believe that if they had been employed, they would never have 

ended up in a training school. 

One attenpt to link learning to behavior is the use of 

educational contracts between a teacher and a student. These 

contracts motivate a student to complete an academic assigrunent 

in return for points which can be spent on short term goals ~ 

extra candy and cigarettes, a weekend at home or a trip. The 

only reason to learn is to acquire the extra favors which the 

training school dispenses, a mot ivation which vanishes when the 

s tudent is released. 

Another problem is the lack of compatibility with the 

public schools. How does a child from a training school fit 

- 34 -



0 

back into the public school? If he has acquired reading 

competence, is this accepted by the public school? The after 

care worker is suppose to provide the child 1 s liaison with 

the public school but the John Howard Association report noted 

that there were frequent complaints from public school officials 

about the lack of contacts with them by after care workers. 

This lack of coordination between the institution and 

outside educational programs could further contribute to the 

child 1 s general frustration with schooling. The fact that 

a child is confined to an institution where there is little 

else to do but learn to read without the distractions of the 

street and where there are programmed reading machines may 

stimulate him to improve his reading skills. But such skills 

are not necessarily transferable to public schools. No one 

really knows what happens to students who leave an institu­

tional program and return to school because the Department of 

Juvenile Services or the training school staffs do not do any 

follow up studies to determine what happens to their students 

upon their return to regular public school. 

Another serious problem is the absence of any comprehensive 

screening and diagnosis of learning disorders among the institu­

tional population. Approximately 5% to 10% of the institutional 

population are organic brain-damaged or neurologically-impaired 

children. The Governor and General Assembly of Maryland 

- 35 -



0 

Conunission reported in September 1972 that "possible 15 to 

20 per cent of our inmate students have learning problems 

which seem to fit •.. [the] definition of dyslexia ..•• "* Yet, 

there is no routine screening for dyslexia or learning problems 

generally. Research on a sample of juveniles at the Maryland 

Training School for Boys revealed a greater need for neurological 

examinations because only 13% of the sample had undergone such 

an examination prior· to or after admission.** The lack of 

screening for learning disorders may well mean that certain 

obstacles ~o · learning go uncorrected. 

Teachers who suspect that a child has a learning disorder 

may recommend that he be tested or diagnosed, but there was no 

indication that teachers are trained to recognize these problems. 

The issue of the use of IQ tests which are culturally biased 

(against a predominantly black population) has not been raised 

within the institutions; yet, these tests are one of the basic 

criteria used to place students within cottages and classes. Use 

of these tests results in tracking within the institutions. For 

example, girls at Montrose are classified homogeneously for class-

room .instruction. One teacher reported that, of his "basic" class 

of ten girls who had a recorded IQ i n the below normal range, he 

judged that nine of the girls were in the normal range. 

*Report to the Governor and General Assembly of Maryland 
Conunission on nyslexia 4 (September 27, 1972). 

**Population and Process Characteristics of the Maryland 
Training Schools for Boys, 18-19. 

- 36 -



0 

Another issue to be raised with the institution's 

educational program is the content of instruction. Improved 

reading skills are the main thrust of the program. There is 

no attempt to create links with the outside world. While 

reading skills are concentrated upon, there was no evidence 

of instruction in black history and culture, no enlighten­

ment about the universe of the child, no instruction about 

the economics of the ghetto, the drug market, or the world 

which the child may know. The Task Force observed one class 

in which the teacher was dealing with the issue of drug 

abuse through film strips and discussion. It was evident 

that the students knew more about drugs than the instructor. 

Consequently, that class was of little benefit to the stu­

dents and might well have been held as an evening discussion 

in the cottage. 

Finally, within the relatively short commitment time 

for some students, there is too much to be accomplished and 

because of the lack of compatibility with the public schools, 

there is no comprehensive, ongoing educational program. For 

those students who are in the institution for a longer 

period of time, there is no evidence of a progressive 

educational program. 

- 37 -



r 

0 

Vocational 
Program 

Vocational programs vary in the four training 

schools depending on the age and sex of the 

child. The focus of all vocational programs is blue-collar 

jobs. As Victor Cullen, small engine repair, welding, auto ' 

service, and appliance repair comprise the vocational pro-

gram. Montrose School for Girls offers courses in the 

traditional female trades--cosmetology and vocational train-

ing at Rosewood Hospital (the state hospital for the mentally 

retarded). A special $6,000 grant enabled Montrose to 

establish a vocational aptitude testing program for girls 

over fifteen. This program attempts to measure interest, 

aptitude, dexterity and academic achievement through 

achievement tests and simulated work tests in such areas as 

payroll, inventory, duplication, waitress skills and cosme-

tology. If a girl does demonstrate a vocational aptitude, 

there is no follow- up program to place her on a job or in a 

training program. 

A positive aspect of the training schools is the 

vocationally-oriented cottages. Students live in these 

cottages and hold jobs in the community. Most of these job 

opportunities are in nearby small business and are not neces-

sarily related to the development of any vocational skills. 

Such a p rogram offers genuine opportunities to the 

young people involved and provides an example of how the 

- 38 -



0 

institution does meet the needs of some students. Task Force 

members visited the vocational cottage at Montrose and noted 

that the girls were enthusiastic about their program and 

that the cottage mother had establis hed good rapport with 

them. 

Because of the younger age of boys at Boys Village, 

the vocational program there is essentially pre-vocational ·. 

There are pre-vocational shops in auto mechanics, barbering, 

carpentry, construction trades, and horticulture. These 

vocational programs are overly simplistic and not sufficiently 

demanding. 

Maryland Training School has the older boys who should 

be prepared for the job market, yet its vocational program 

is being revamped. The former program, which the superintendent 

admitted was "pathetic," is being abandoned and a new program 

is to be instituted which will consist of 12 week programs 

in gas station attendant, carpentry, masonry, and dry clean­

ing. The institution has commitments from oil companies, 

non-union contractors, and the Dry Cleaning Institute for on­

the-job training. 

There appeared to be very little emphasis on job place­

ment or work release programs fo r children in these institutions, 

although some job placement is done at Montrose, and Maryland 

Training School for Boys is planning for it when the new 

- 39 -



0 

vocational program is instituted. Some of the youngsters who 

were interviewed told Task Force members that jobs in their 

community would be a big factor in keeping them out of 

trouble and out of the training schools. 

Several boys expressed the desire to get into vocational 

training programs like the Job Corps, or to secure some kind 

of employment, but they felt little was being done by the 

institution to assist them in achieving this goal. Even if 

the jobs were available, some of these boys may not have 

been employable. But without the possibility of a job or job 

t raining, there is little incentive for a boy to acquire job­

related skills. 

The most striking impression of the vocational program 

in the training schools is that all the programs for juvenile 

programs for juvenile delinquents or CINS are trade oriented. 

Blue collar expectations are assumed for these youngsters. 

There is no exposure to or training in quasi-professional or 

professional jobs. Since the institutions automatically 

assume that none of the children they get will ever be capable 

of anything more than a low-paying, low-skilled job, there is 

no attempt to make children aware of or to provide training 

in medical, educational, scientific or technical skills. 

There is apparently no attempt to forecast what techno­

logical skills will be needed in the future job market and to 

train and place students. The superintendent of Victor Cullen 

- 40 -



r 

0 

reported that the market for repairmen for outboard motors 

was expanding in Maryland and therefore the small engine 

repair vocational shop was instituted at his institution. 

However, such vocational training would only be useful for a 

boy who comes from the extreme western part of the state or 

from the Eastern Shore where water sports, including boating, 

are prevalent. 

The limited vocational and placement opportunities for 

chi ldren in these institutions is illustrated by the story 

of one 17 year old boy at Maryland Training School. During one 

summer at the institution he worked as a tutor with younger 

children. He likErlhis job and was interested in finding a 

s i mi lar program in which he could work, but there was no 

opportunity to do so. The training school was unable to 

capitalize upon his interest by placing him in a program that 

might have led him into a career of teaching or working with 

children. 

Medical 
Facilities 

Dr. Saunders' findings and recommendations with 

respect to the medical aspects of the four 

institutions are distressingly s i milar to the findings and recom-

mendations of the Youth Committee of the Maryland Chapter of 

the American Academy of Pediatrics which conducted inspections 

of these same training schools almost two years ago. 

- 41 -



( 

0 

Each institution has a separate infirmary and medical 

staff which is responsible for giving physical examinations 

to children upon entrance, for diagnosing and caring for ill 

students, and for referring children who require specialized 

medical care to outside medical facilities or physicians. 

Isolation rooms which are used for both discipline and medi­

cal purposes are located in the infirmary, and. the staff is 

responsible for maintaining watch on all children who are 

locked in isolation cells. In addition to these functions, 

the infirmaries also have dental facilities. Typically, the 

p sychiatrist is attached to the infirmary. 

All of the institutions have full-time staff nurses, 

but none has full-time physicians. Medical, dental and 

psychiatric staff are available on a part-time basis. 

The physical facilities of the infirmaries are considered 

adequate to deal with the medical problems commonly encoun­

tered. The laboratory facilities are not considered fully 

adequate because, while they have the ability to perform 

urinalysis, they do not screen to detect for such problems as 

anemia, venereal disease, TB, drug abuse or genetic dis-

ease. Routine physical examinations are done within 48 

hours of entrance . This examina tion includes visual and 

audiometric testing . The rationale offered for the absence 

of TB screening at Maryland Training School was that children 

- 42 -



0 

may stay at the training school such a short time that even 

if TB were diagnos.ed, there would be no opportunity for follow­

up treatment ~ Dr. Saunders found this reasoning totally 

unacceptable. During the initial physical examination and 

during the first 48 hours, the results of a TB skin test 

could be determined, and the child could be treated on an out­

patient basis at a hospital whether or not he was in the 

training school. Gynecological screening is done on girls 

at Montrose upon entrance and when they return from weekend 

visits or AWOL status. 

Periodic physicals are not conducted during a child's 

stay at the training school, and there is no discharge 

physical done, unless specifically requested for some reason. 

Periodic screening for venereal disease and drug abuse 

ought to be provided, not just when a student returns from 

weekend visits. All institutions reported a very low inci­

dence of VD and drug abuse, but given the high rate of 

venereal disease and drug use among young people and the 

background of a majority of the children, Dr. Saunders found 

it difficult to believe that there was not a higher incidence 

of these two problems than reported. 

The bulk of the medical staff is nurses. All training 

schools have the part-time services of a physician, but with 

one exception, Boys Village, these physicians are general 

- 43 -



( 

0 

practitioners whose training is not oriented toward juvenile 

or adolescent medicine. Dr. Saunders also noted a need for 

returning medical corpsmen, especially at the male institu­

tions, because they could relate wel l t o the students, as well 

as deal with medical problems. Special emphasis should be 

placed on obtaining physicians and o ther medical staff with 

trai ning in the care of young children and adolescents and 

who would be willing to take refresher courses as a condi­

tion of their employment. 

Dental care is a priority need of children and adolescents. 

De ntal facilities and staffing are inadequate at all institu­

t i ons, with the possible exception of Maryland Training School 

where the facilities appear adequate but are understaffed. 

There is no program for the utilization of dental technicians 

to support dental services which are so sorely needed by the 

adolescent population. 

A major deficiency in the medi cal program at all the 

training schools is the absence of proper medical records 

and data retrieval for children confined in these institu­

tions . There is no uniform medical rec.ord system. It is 

therefore very difficult to find out what medical problems 

e x ist and how they are being trea ted because the records are 

so poor. Medical record keeping is left to medical personnel 

at the individual institutions. One has to go through charts 

- 44 -



0 

page by page to come up with any specific diagnosis or recur­

ring medical problems either for an individual child or for 

the whole population. The monthly report was considered to 

have inadequate information with respect to specific diseases. 

There should be some· kind of medical record keeping 

system which permits the medical staff to match services to 

the needs of children as determined by a review of the daily 

log. For children and adolescents, the g reatest needs will 

probably be for dental and dermatological care, the treat­

ment of venereal diseases~ and drug abuse. 

Recommendations for improved medical record keeping at 

the training schools have been made previously by the Youth 

Committee of the Maryland Chapter of the American Academy of 

Pediatrics, however, the sample system provided to the 

Department of Juvenile Services was never implemented. In 

view of these previous findings and recommendations, it is 

very frustrating to find the same problem still existing. 

The four training schools have a basic diet 

for all children which is probably adequate 

for the normal healthy child. The institutions spend on the 

average of $1 per day per child for food. There did not appear 

to be uniform standards set for diets because one training 

school made up its own menus while another used menus provided 

by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. 

- 45 -



0 

There is a wide age range of boys and girls in three of 

the four training schools, but the standard diet does not 

accommodate the different caloric and protein requirements 

of the various ages of children. 

Special diets for particular medical problems are left 

to the physician or nurses at each institution to prescribe. 

The most common special diet is for diabetics. There is no 

dietician or nutritionist on the staff of the training schools 

for consultation on special diets, and it is felt that such 

personnel would be more qualified to prescribe special diets. 

Furthermore, there should be diets for the special medical 

problems of young . people, such as anemia and obesity. 

There should be uniform standards established for all 

institutions for the special caloric and protein requirements 

and amounts for children of different ages as well as for 

children with special medical problems. Dieticians should 

be available to all training schools to prescribe special 

diets. 

Use of Drugs 
as Therapy 

Tranquilizer drugs and sedatives are prescribed 

for children who are aggressive, hyperactive, 

hysterical in isolation, or who exhibit other kinds of acute 

behavioral problems. It was difficult to determine exactly 

what is being done in the use of drug therapy because of the 

inadequate medical records, or approximately how many students 

- 46 -



( 

0 

in the training schools are receiving drugs. The majority 

of the drugs are ordered and prescribed by the psychiatrist: 

however, in a few instances the general practitioner pre­

scribes. Drugs are then administered by the nurse to the 

cottage staff which actually dispenses the drugs. 

After the psychiatrist orders the drug to be admin­

istered, then sometime in the future the child is taken off 

the drug if the psychiatrist so determines. However, for the 

most part the psychiatrist acts as the screening agent and is 

not concerned with repeated, on-going evaluations. 

The system of using drugs for modifying behavior breaks 

down because of the failure to reevaluate their use on a 

particular child. It was difficult to determine what criteria 

tNereused to take a child off a drug because, for the most part, 

the psychiatrist did not have sufficient time for reevaluation 

nor was there a regular system for doing so. 

The Task Force is also concerned that drugs are used 

solely for behavior modification to maintain control of chil­

dren, particularly aggressive children, rather than dealing 

with children who may have other kinds of problems, such as 

depression, and who may benefit from a different kind of 

drug. 

- 47 -



0 

The possibility of drug abuse within the institution 

also arises in a system where the cottage staff dispenses 

the pills and there is little or no on-going reexamination. 

Pills may not be dispensed as prescribed, and thus may be 

stockpiled for other uses or for sale. The creation of a 

drug mentality and drug dependency may also result. 

Maryland Training School has established a relation­

ship with Shepard-Pratt Hospital in which residents and · 

psychiatric interns conduct research on juvenile inmates. 

This professional assistance is a mixed blessing. While 

there is greater potential for adequate professional screen­

ing, there is also potential for mischief in using a captive 

population as a research model without the truly informed 

knowledge and consent of both the child and parent. 

Finally, the kinds of problems observed and changes 

recommended do not necessarily require a great deal more 

money. More specialized medical professionals may be needed 

but essentially all that is required is a revision of the 

resources that already exist and a uniform medical record 

system that would permit the institutions to match diagnosis 

to treatment. 

- 48 -



0 

Special 
Programs 

Behavior modification and group therapy programs 

are being developed at three of the four training 

schools. These programs have been instituted recently in an attempt 

by the Department of Juvenile Services to move away from the "sick 

child" form of therapy in which children are supposedly seen on a 

one to one basis by psychiatrists and psychologists. These pro-

grams are funded by the Governor's Commission on Law Enforcement 

and the Administration of Justice from federal funds under the 

Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act. 

The behavior modification programs in a few cottages at Victor 

Cullen, Montrose, and Maryland Training School are based on a point 

system by which students receive points for good behavior and spend 

them on certain privileges. The types of good behavior for which 

points are earned and the value of those points are defined by the 

staff and include such things as cooperative behavior around the 

cottage, behavior in line, behavior during sleeping time, appearance, 

prompt response to roll call, respect to staff, and courtesy to 

other students. It is generally assumed by institutional personnel 

that all children will benefit from a behavior modification program. 

Educational contracts are also a part of the behavior modifica-

tion program. A teacher and student agree on a contract to perform 

certain academic tasks for which points are earned upon successful 

completion. Points are recorded on cards or "bank" books by the 

staff. 

- 49 -



r 

0 

Special privileges which can be earned with accumulated 

points include a home visit or an extra day on home visit, a 

movie, extra time watching television, a photography or an art 

lesson . Points can also be converted into cash for the purpose 

of minor items at a small store on the premises of the institution. 

The behavior modification programs are another means toward 

the training school's goal of controlling a child's behavior within 

the institution . Behavior is molded to "pro-eocial" goals as de­

fined by the institution. The process of defining what behavior 

will be considered acceptable has no relation to the real life 

experiences of the child. The behavior modification program be­

comes the vehicle for imposing on poor and black children white 

middle-class values which people who design and implement these 

programs believe are necessary for "rehabilitation." The institu­

tion thus alienates the child and makes it that much more difficult 

for therapy or "rehabilitation" to succeed. 

For the child in the training school, behavior modification 

becomes a way of making it through the institution. Whether the 

same reward system can be maintained upon release is open to serious 

question. Behavior modification programs serve the training school 

staff's need to maintain control. 

The reward system in a behavior modification program is not 

essentially different from the reward and punishment system that 

operates in the institution for other children. Additionally, the 

- 50 -



( 

0 

program may not alter behavior at all. This is illustrated by 

the COf!lll\ents of one boy at Maryland Training School who was in 

one of the two behavior modification cottages. "Why should I 

earn points so that I can go home on the weekend," he said, 

"when I can go home anytime I want?" He simply leaves the train­

ing school and is considered AWOL until he returns. This same 

young man pointed out that other students at Maryland Training 

School see movies without having to earn points for the privilege. 

Furthermore, at Boys Village which does not have a behavior 

modification program, the same reward system operates. There are 

numerous opportunities for off-campus trips, but if a boy misbehaves, 

he is put on restriction ·and not permitted to go on the trip. 

Positive behavior is rewarded; anti-social behavior is punished 

by restriction or extra work duties. The superintendent at Boys 

Village is anxious to institute a behavior modification program 

but his proposals foF funding these programs through the Governor's 

Commission have been turned down. 

Only at Victor CUllen did the Task Force have an opportunity 

to see the group therapy or guided-group interaction at work. Boys 

in each cottage are divided into two teams, or groups; each group 

is assigned a group leader who is a staff member. The group of 

eight to ten boys meets periodically to discuss individual or 

group problems and to deal with behavioral problems. The group 

itself usually decides what it is going to talk about. In theory, 

- 51 -



the goal of the group process is to redirect behavior in the 

cottage and classroom as well as in situations within the 

institution and without. The way in which the group deals 

with problems is guided by the staff group leader. This 

staff member should be skilled in developing the group pro­

cess so that positive reinforcement of the group or an 

individual within the group occurs. 

The Task Force sat in on two group sessions at Victor 

Cullen. One was considered a healthy session in which a 

boy was encouraged to talk about his own behavior and the 

other boys helped him to understand himself by their posi­

tive contributions. 

The other group session was considered destructive 

because the discussion was used to force certain behavior 

rather than to deal with the causes behind the behavior. 

The g roup became an oligarchy which demanded conformity to 

group norms rather than assisting an individual boy to deal 

constructively with his own behavior. 

This session did not seem to function as group therapy 

should, and it became another means of doing what the insti­

tution does anyway: force the students to knuckle down to 

the s ystem. At Victor Cullen it is assumed that all children 

will benefit from g roup therapy. A child has no choice 

whether to participate in the group process. He must yield 

- 52 -



0 

to the group pressure. There is no other recourse or alterna-

tive. If a boy refuses to participate in the group process 

he is sent to the adjustment unit. the secure facility used 

for discipline purposes. The control of behavior, which is 

the goal of the group process, is oriented toward maki{ng it 

within the training school and getting out rather than any 

long range be~avior. 

The group process operates in the interests of the 

institution. The key to making the process work is the group 

leader. Whether the process functions to help the children 

depends on the ability of the group leader to identify 

problems and to prevent the group from becoming brutal and 

destructive toward any individual member of the group. In 

the destructive session there was no evidence that the group 

leader had any specific training in group therapy. Indeed, 

he was part of the regimentation process. 

Finally, since these sessions can be brutal if not 

conducted properly there is serious question whether this is 

healthy for children, especially those who may have emotional 

problems. Dr. Saunders noted in the medical logs that one 

boy broke under the pressure of the group and had to be 

treated at the infirmary at Victor Cullen . 

Girls at 
Montrose 

A special word must be said about the treatment 

of girls by training schools. From discussions 

- 53 -



r 

0 

wifh the superintendent and staff at Montrose and observa­

tions of the program, it is apparent that girls are treated 

differently than boys. 

The majority of g irls at Montrose are there as CINS 

rather than delinquents. The superintendent stated his 

belief that judges were more lenient with girls and thus 

classify most girls who come before the court as CINS. Yet 

girls are committed for behavior which boys would not be. 

The superintendent noted that girls committed as CINS would, 

if adults, be charged with prostitution. However·, the 

charge of prostitution does not differentiate between actual 

soliciting and sexually promiscuous behavior, the latter not 

being a punishable offense. Therefore, girls may be picked 

up by police or reported by parents for behavior which is 

quite normal for a maturing girl. Similar male behavior is 

not condemned by social mores. 

Within the training school, girls have less freedom 

of movement than boys, and the rules are not applied evenly 

to boys and girls. Girls are most aware of this discrimina­

tion because they learn from the boys at dances about life 

in the other taining schools. For example, boys are allowed 

unlimited cigarettes while girls a re restricted to four 

cigarettes a day. 

- 54 -



0 

Furthermore, the vocational program and much of the 

atmosphere at Montrose reinforces traditional female stereo-

types about a girl's role in society and possible vocational 

opportunities for women. Jobs as ha irdressers, waitresses, 

and nurses are expected and reinforced through the voca-

tional program and displays in the school library. There 

is no attempt to expose girls to professional jobs and 

roles, or to careers other than motherhood which are 

increasingly being made available to women in this society. 

Racial Aspects 
of the Training 
Schools 

A decade ago, before Maryland's training 

schools were desegregated, there were 

approximately equal numbers of white and 

black juvenile delinquents in the state's training schools. 

Now there are more black delinquents committed than white. 

While a majority of the referrals to juvenile court are 

white, the majority of children committed to training schools 

are black boys and girls from Baltimore. 

- 55 -



0 

The figures* below illustrate the racism operating within 

the juvenile criminal justice system: 

Program White Black 

Referrals to juvenile court 70% 30% 

Training school commitments 46% 54% 

Purchase of care services 68% 3~ 

Detentions: 

Maryland Children's Center 57% 43% 

Waxter 76% 24% 

These statistics demonstrate that black juvenile 

delinquents are far more likely to be confined in training 

schools while white delinquents, are more likely to be provided 

with the alternative of short-term detention or purchase of 

care facilities. Private facilities which contract with the 

Department of Juvenile Services under the purchase of care 

arrangement choose the children whom they will accept and turn 

down those children whom they do not want. A number of these 

private facilities are all or predominantly white. By rejecting 

black children and accepting white children, the private 

facilities provide a haven for white juveniles under the care 

* John Howard Association, Comp rehensive Long Range Master Plan, 
Department of Juvenile Services, State of Maryland, 138 
(May 31, 1972). 

- 56 -



0 

of the Department. Black juveniles are sent to training schools 

because of the lack of private alternatives. 

The John Howard Association which has recently completed 

an examination of the entire Department of Juvenile Services, 

offered two possible explanations for the racial characteristics 

of the system: 

"One is that more white children are diagnosed 

and more black youngsters are committed without 

such. The other is that the high number of 

white youngsters in detention means that this 

method of handling is used in lieu of eventual 

commitment to the training schools, regarding 

which many judges have little confidence." 

Several DJS officials have expressed the belief that 

juvenile court judges in rural and surburban parts of the state 

are extremely reluctant to commit white youngsters to majority 

black training schools. This reluctance is especially true 

of Maryland Training Schools for Boys which is almost 80% black. 

In 1970, a lawsuit was successfully brought to make the 

juvenile age limit of eighteen uniform throughout the state. 

Prior to that lawsuit, the juveni le age limit in the City of 

Baltimore was sixteen. As a result of the suit, 16-18 year olds 

from Baltimore were transferred from adult jails to the Maryland 

- 57 -



0 

Training School. The. transfer of more mature youngsters who 

had experienced prison life caused disruption and chaos, 

AWOLs increased dram~tically, and there were reports of racial 

friction. This situation undoubtably deterred judges from 

committing white juveniles to Maryland Training School for Boys, 

and further contributed to the racial imbalance at the training 

school. The superintendent of Maryland Training School told 

the Task Force that he believes judges are still very reluctant 

to send white children to his institution even though life at 

the training school has returned to normal. 

This judicial attitude is also reflected in the fact 

that the male CINS institution, Victor Cullen, is majority white 

and the two training schools for delinquent boys are majority 

black. The John Howard Association report noted that these 

racial figures indicate that while white youngsters are being 

disposed of as CINS, black youngsters are being committed to 

training schools as delinquents. The Association found that 

misuse is being made of the CINS category by which some CINS 

children are actually delinquents and sometimes more in need 

of correctional services and facilities than some delinquents 

who could more properly be treated as true CINS cases.* 

* Comprehensive Long Range Master Plan, 101, 139. 

- 58 -



0 

With the exception of Victor Cullen, the cottage staff 

which has direct daily contact with children is predominantly 

black. However, at the higher decision-making levels the 

staff is predominantly white. Th ree of the four training 

schools have white superintendents. The juvenile court 

services staff throughout the state is 21% black. Although 

the Director of the Department of Juvenile Services is black, 

his headquarters' staff is 7~fe white. 

Finally, the juvenile court judges who make the ultimate 

decision on commitment to training schools or to some other 

alt ernative, are all white, with the exception of two masters 

in the Baltimore Juvenile Court. 

Discipline and 
Punishment Discipline is maintained and punishment 

imposed on children in the training schools 

in a variety of ways. Students may be given extra work details, 

confined to their room, and put on restrictions for minor 

infractions of the rules. Restriction generally means that a 

student cannot participate in some group activity on or off 

the grounds or is denied a weekend trip home or is denied 

cigarettes. In some.cases, restriction can be indefinite until 

the staff decides to revoke it • 

. - 59 -



( 

0 

More serious violations of the regulations result 

in confinement in the adjustment unit or in isolation cells, 

and it is these forms of punishment with which the Task Force 

is most concerned. 

The use of adjustment units for punishment at Victor 

Cullen and Maryland Training School has already been described. 

The ultimate form of punishment imposed on training school youth 

is the isolation cell. These cells are small rooms located 

in the infi~ary. Some light comes through a small window at 

the top of the room. Each cell contains nothing but an iron bed 

and a worn mattress. A blanket, but no sheets, is provided 

at night. Sheets are not permitted in order to prevent possible 

suicide attempts. Upon request, reading material is made 

available to children during the day. Meals are eaten in the 

cell. A student may talk with one or two staff people, but 

otherwise he is totally alone and idle. 

Of crucial importance, is the fact that prior to being 

placed in isolation, there is no psychiatric or psychological 

assessment of the child to determine whether his personality 

can withstand this confinement. The fact that some children 

are overwrought and violent prior to being placed in the cell 

and, therefore, difficult to examine, is offered by some staff 

as the reason why examinations are not conducted. In the Task 

- 60 -



r 

0 

Force's opinion, the use of isolation and the failure to 

determine whether an individual can withstand it creates a 

serious risk to the mental state of children. Indeed, there 

was evidence in the medical records t hat some children had 

"flipped out" as a result of confinement in isolation. 

Departmental rules provide that no student can be in 

an isolation cell for more than 48 hours. Students in isolation 

must be observed periodically and notes about his condition 

recorded in a log book. Upon release from isolation, the 

infirmary staff must observe the student's condition: however, 

there is no medical or psychiatric examination. 

The most frequent use of isolation is for runaways 

(AWOLs) and for assaults on students or staff. It may also be 

used occasionally for medical purposes to isolate students with 

communicable diseases. Records also revealed that in a few 

instances of attempted suicide in isolation, the treatment 

consisted of returning the child to isolation under sedation 

and of having the psychiatrist see the child on an emergency 

basis. 

Isolation for AWOLs is justified as preventing further 

attempts to run away. For some children, isolation serves as a 

deterrent: for others it does not. A child who runs for the 

- 61 -



( 

0 

first time may not be put in the isolation cell, but "chronic 

runners" are either placed in isolation or the adjustment unit. 

The superintendent of Boys Village told the Task Force that 

he did not approve of the use of isola tion for students who 

runaway for justifiable reasons or for an AWOL student who 

returns voluntarily to the institution. 

In other cases, reasons for the use o f isolation 

recorded by the infirmary's long are vague. "Acting out" or 

"need to cool off" are reasons frequently offered. In no case 

is there any due process procedure used in connection with 

p l acing a student in isolation. No hearing is held to determine 

the causes of a student's behavior, nor is the student permitted 

a chance to def end himself in face of this most severe form of 

punishment. 

The use of isolation is not infrequent. At Boys Village, 

an average of 30 boys a month, or less than 10% of the population 

are placed in isolation. At Maryland Training School, which had 

approximately 172 boys on grounds at the end of November, 1972, 77 

students (or 44%) were placed in isolation. 

The Task Force noted that t raining school superintendents 

have have different philosophies about the use of isolation. 

Mr. Dean at Victor Cullen considers isolation "a very positive 

- 62 -



( 

0 

part of the p:i:'ograrn. 11 Mr. Sauls at Boys Village, on the 

other hand, says he "hates" isolation but that he has to use 

it to protect the community from chronic AWOL children. Mr. 

Sauls would prefer alternatives to isolation, such as all day 

attention by a staff member or counseling by a psychologist, 

but there just is not sufficient staff to provide this kind of 

concentrated, individual attention. 

The Task Force recognizes that .there may be some 

children who are such a threat to the training school community 

that they may need to be locked up for a short time. Nevertheless, 

the Task Force found it very difficult to justify the use of 

isolated confinement for young people, particularly without 

prior psychiatric assessment and some kind of due process hearing 

at which a student is confronted with specific reasons for this 

proposed form of punishment. Isolation in a barren cell is a 

brutal way for society to treat severely troubled children. 

The Youth Committee of the Maryland Chapter of the American 

Academy of Pediatrics commenting on disciplinary isolation 

cells has stated that "they strongly suggest attitudes concerning 

disciplinary management of a punitive nature which date as far 

back as the pre-Christian era. 11 

- 63 -



0 

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 

For a limited number of children, the training schools are 

providing some services. They do provide a bed, three meals a 

day, and security for some children who may never have had 

these essentials for a healthy and happy environment. The Task 

Force observed that some boys in training schools appreciated 

the contact with older males which is often lacking in their 

own home environment. The vocational cottages at Montrose, 

Victor Cullen, and Maryland Training School do afford a few 

youngsters an opportunity to work or receive training off grounds 

t hat they cannot find in their own communities. lbwever, these 

same services could better be provided by programs located in 

the communities and neighborhoods from which the children come. 

The Task Force recognizes that there are a very few children who 

present a serious threat to the community for whom secure insti­

tutional care is required. 

Despite the fact that training schools as they now exist 

may be of some value to a limited number of children, this fact · 

does not justify their continued use for all children who are 

presently committed to or detained in them. Ther e are many 

children in these institutions who simply do not belong there. 

They do not need to be l ocked up in i nstitutions remote from their 

community , and the help they do need could better be provided in 

- i -



( 

0 

a stable-family-like setting in the community which would provide 

them better access to their family and friends, to jobs, educa-

tional programs, and the psychic reinforcements of familiar 

surroundings. 

The present use of training schools by the state of 

Maryland for delinquents and children in need of supervision 

must be condemned for the following reasons: 

1. The training schools are not helping to solve the 
problem of increasing juvenile delinquency. In 
Fiscal Year 1971, juvenile arrests comprised 34% of 
all arrests in the state. The juvenile arrest rate 
increased almost 3% from 1968 through 1970. Due to 
the juvenile court age change in the city of 
Baltimore from 16 .to 18, the arrest rate increased 
47% in Fiscal Year 1971. The Department of Juvenile 
Services has experienced increasing referrals of 
delinquents and CINS each year since the Department's 
establishment in 1967. 

Institutional populations and expenditures have 
increased in recent years, and further increases are 
projected. 

By the Department's own statistics, the training 
schools do not have a good record of rehabilitating 
children. The recidivism rate for all training 
schools is approximately 43% while the recidivism 
rate for children admitted to the group homes run by 
the Department is 2go~. 

2. The training schools a re largely custodial and not 
rehabilitative. They are not capable of providing 
treatment for seriously troubled youth with emotional 
and psychiatric problems . The Task Force on Juvenile 
Justice is not alone in this conclusion. Judge Robert 
I. H. Hammerman, chief judge of the Baltimore Juvenile 
Court, commented in Jan uary , 1972 that "the state is 
almost totally lacking in treatment for emotionally 
disturbed children and most importantly, for kids who 

- ii -



r 

0 

are addicted to drugs." With reference to the train­
ing school, the judge s a id: "We' re only warehousing 
them." 

The most stunning observation about life at a training 
school is the children's supervised idleness . Much of 
the program is designed to ma intain control and mold 
behavior of children while they are at the training 
school. It is unrealistic to expect a training school 
to reform delinquent and CINS youth when it is unable 
to correct the situation which produced the delin­
quency in the first place. The child may learn how 
to cope with life in the training school but not his 
environment at home, school, or in his neighborhood. 

3. There is a serious lack of proper screening and 
diagnosis for all children prior to conunitment to the 
training school or during the orientation at the 
training school. Consequently, physical, emotional, 
mental or neurological problems may not be detected. 
Even if they were detected, the training schools do 
not have the capability of treating a wide-range of 
individual problems due to the lack of sufficient 
professional personnel, under-trained institutional 
staff, and the custodial orientation of the training 
school's program. 

4. There is a serious lack of alternatives to training 
schools in the state. Although the Department has 
plans to operate more group homes with Safe Streets 
Act funds from the Federal government, it presently 
operates only three qroup homes in Baltimore. 
Federal funds for the operation of alternative pro­
grams are available to the state for a period of just 
three years. After that time, the state and local 
governments must assume the cost of operation. Pur­
chase of care through private institutions and programs 
is limited. Private facilities can refuse to accept 
any child. Thus, when there is no place for a child 
in trouble, he goes to a training school. 

5. There are juveniles in the training schools who, in 
the opinion of the Task Force, do not b elong there. 
This is particularly so i n the case of many "children 
in need of supervision" a nd of children on detention 
who have conunitted no crime. They are treated by the 
institutions in the same manner as delinquent children. 

- iii :-



( 

0 

6. There is discrimination operating within Mary land's 
juvenile j us tice system. Bl ack children are more 
likely than white children to be committed to train­
ing schools and more likely to be committed as 
delinquents. There is also discrimination against 
girls, most of whom are committed as CINS. They 
are not accorded the same privileges and freedom 
of movement as boys, and they are likely to be com­
mitted for acts for which boys are not committed. 

It is for these reasons that reform of the present system of 

institutionalizing children is needed. To this end, the Task 

Force has proposed recommendations which it believes should set 

the direction of that reform. 

- iv -



0 

RECOMMENDATIONS 

The Task Force on Juvenile Justice offers the following 

recommendations for refonn of Maryland's juvenile justice 

system: 

I. Phase Out Training Schools 

Within the next three years, the present training schools 

should be phased out and replaced by a variety of community-

based facilities that would accommodate most of the children who 

are now removed from their families and sent to training schools. 

The only children who would be institutionalized are those chil-

dren who pose a direct and immediate danger to themselves or 

the community. 

1. Within six months, the Department of Juvenile Services 
should cooperate with the Task Force on Juvenile 
Justice and other community representatives to 
develop plans for alternatives to training schools. 
The Department and the Task Force should begin with 
a series of community seminars and planning ses-
sions devoted to developing an affinnative action 
plan with goals, timetables, and procedures for 
accomplishing this goal. 

2. For the small number of children who would require 
institutionalization, services must be therapeutic 
in nature and not simply custodial. Rehabilitation 
programs should be directed to the child's specific 
emotional, psychological, or neurological problem. 
Programs should be intens ive and structured to develop 
a healthy self-concept a nd positive motivation, and 
training should develop t he potential of each child 
so that he can take advantage of eduational and occu­
pational choices available to him. 

- v -



( 

0 

II. Eliminate Injustices in Present and Future Facilities 

To eliminate the present injustices in the juvenile 

justice system for all children who are now institutionalized 

and who will be served by future community-based programs, it 

is incumbent upon the state of Maryland to: 

1. Develop and implement a Juvenile Bill of Rights that 
would accord due process and humane care as close to 
the home as possible. 

2. Implement a program of juvenile advocates to insure 
that children's rights have not been violated. 
Assignment of advocates wou ld be made before a child 
reaches the stage of formal adjudication where the 
child requires a lawyer. 

3. Provide for each child, prior to his adjudication, a 
diagnostic evaluation which would define the needs 
of that child.Such a diagnosis should be mandatory 
for all children and should include a medical, 
psychiatric, social, psychological, and educational 
diagnosis. 

4. All dispositions, including diagnostic evaluation 
and adjudication, must occur within 90 days. Should 
this not happen, the state's attorney will be required 
to drop all charges. 

5. Juvenile court judges should be responsible only for 
decisions on the guilt or innocence of children 
brought before them. Discretion as to treatment 
and placement should be removed from the judges and 
placed with the Department of Juvenile Services. 

6. The use of isolation cel ls should be discontinued 
immediately. 

7. Adjustment units or max imum security cottages should 
be abolished immediately . 

8. Greater use should be made of probation so that only 
in the most severe cases wou ld children be removed 
from their family or community. 

- vi -



0 

9. New regulations on detention shou l d be implemented 
which would permit detention only in cases where 
the child is a threat to his life or that of 
another human being . Children awaiting adjudica­
tion can be cared for in the ir own home or in 
connnunity homes. In no instance should children on 
detention be confined with ad judicated delinquents. 

10. No child who has been fo un d to be a CINS (Children 
In Need of Supervision) should be committed to a 
training school. 

11. Different treatment of g irls must be eliminated. As 
one step toward this goal, a woman sensitive to and 
realistic about the problems and aspirations of young 
women, and modern in outlook, should be appointed the 
head of any community facility for girls. 

12. Greater opportunities for contact between boys and 
girls and between juvenile delinquents and their 
neighborhood peers should be provided. 

13. No personnel shall assume any duty in any present or 
future facility without having undergone thorough 
training prior to assignment. Mary land's colleges, 
especially the black colleges, should begin develop­
ing special programs and course work to insure that 
qualified people are available to work with children 
in trouble. 

III. Revamp Medical Program 

The Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene should imme-

diately appoint a panel of medi cal experts and specialists in 

the care of young children and adolescents which would be 

responsible for revamping medi cal and dental serv ices in all 

present and future juvenile insti tutions and fac i lities . Physi-

cians and dentists appointed to t h is panel should be sensitive 

to social problems and compatible with the racial composition 

of the children to be served. Additionally: 

- vii -



( 

0 

1. There should be a centra.lized administrative medical 
component directly responsible for setting standards 
of medical care in all Depa rtments of Juvenile Ser­
vices Programs. The University of Maryland Hospital's 
Department of Adolescent Medicine should be respon­
sible for establishing this centralized medical 
component. The function o f t his component would be 
to: 

a. monitor medical facilities and services in 
all Department of Juvenile Services programs 
and facilitis; 

b. establish inhouse, continuous training for 
all medical and psychiatric personnel, such 
training to be reflective of the latest 
trends in pediatric ·and adolescent medicine; 

c. establish minimally acceptable professional 
standards for all people employed by the 
Department who deliver medical and psychiatric 
services to children. 

2. A standardized medical record keeping system must be 
implemented in all facilities and programs. Data 
retrieval mechanisms must be a part of such a system. 

3. Medical screening for all children should uniformly 
include blood count, urinalysis, genetic diseases, 
tuberculosis, venereal disease, and drug abuse. 

4. Medical personnel employed by the Department of 
Juvenile Services should be specialists in pediatric 
and adolescent medicine, and should include physicians 
from the city of Baltimore. 

5. Medical services should be further augmented by the 
utilization of medical corpsmen, dental technicians, 
and other paraprofes siona ls so that the full burden 
of round-the-clock medica l care does not fall on 
untrained personnel or a nurse. 

IV. Evaluate Behavior Modification Programs 

It is encumbent upon the Department of Juvenile Services 

that all new programs such as behavior modification and peer 

- viii -



0 

group therapy be tested and proved valid prior to their imple-

mentation. All staff employed in such prograns must be screened 

and have received ·training designed b y experts in the field. 

Periodic monitoring by outside evalua Lors must be built into 

any program. Furthermore: 

1. Behavior modification and peer group therapy programs 
must function to serve the needs of the child and not 
solely the needs of the institutions. Specifically, 
the goals and objectives of these programs not only 
must be related to the child's present behavior, but 
more importantly, must be directed to his eventual 
return to his family and community and the demands 
that this environment will place upon him. 

2. Behavior modification and peer group therapy pro­
grams should not be used to force upon a child a 
value system alien to his needs and environment. 
The development and operation of these programs 
must involve persons who are familiar with the 
environment fxom which delinquent children come 
and with the pressures and problems with which the 
children must copeo 

v. Eliminate Racial Discrimination 

Discrimination based on race and class within the juvenile 

justice system must be eliminated. To this end: 

1. There should be an independent monitoring system 
which periodically reviews all aspects on the juve­
nile justice system to identify and eliminate any 
discriminatory aspects. 

2. No state or Federal funds should be utilized for 
private purchase of care facilities for which there 
is prima facie evidence of discrimination. 

- ix -



l 

VI. ·Revamp Educational and Vocat.ionai Programs 

1. Education~l programs in any Department of Juvenile 
Services facility should be closely coordinated with 
the ed_ucational program in the school system from 
which the child comes. Measurements of educational 
progress should be uniform in all programs so that 
a child is not recommended for one grade level and 
then retested and put in another grade level. 

2. A period of transition ·between the Department of 
Juvenile Services facility and the public schools 
should be developed in such a way to guarantee that 
the child will succeed and be provided all the sup­
portive services that he needs in his new educationai 
placement. 

3. Vocational programs ought not to lead to false 
expectations with respect to job placement. A more 
realistic vocational program would be one in which 
the interests of the child is explored and the child 
himself is exposed to a wide-range of occupational 
choices, both blue-collar and professional. 

- x -