The Jefferson County Family Drug Court has been selected to be part of the Peer Learning Court Program developed by the Center for Children and Family Futures, with the support of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, part of the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Peer Learning Court Program is part of the range of technical assistance opportunities available through the Center for Children and Family Futures. A court that has been selected as an FDC Peer Learning Court uses sound, evidence-supported practices and policies and demonstrates strong collaboration among the courts, child welfare, substance-abuse treatment agencies and others.
“Peer-learning courts serve as best-practice models and mentors for jurisdictions interested in the adoption of Family Drug Court components,” said Foster Cook, director of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Treatment Alternatives for Safer Communities, which administers Family Drug Court. “We bring a core clinical team of designated DHR case workers and substance-abuse counselors to offer thorough assessment, multidisciplinary case planning and referrals to partnering service providers, offering substance-abuse treatment, parenting skills, children’s services, counseling and in-home support.”
Established in 2010, Family Drug Court serves drug-involved parents referred by the Alabama Department of Human Resources. Since initiation, the program has served 176 parents with 322 children. Thirty-one parents have graduated from the program.
Twenty-eight percent of program children were reunited with their parents, compared to only 17 percent of nonprogram children. In addition, the number of days from when DHR intervened in a case to the time when the case was closed declined from 334 for nonprogram children to 208.4 for program participants. A preliminary estimate suggests that the program saves DHR $1,884 per child.
The Jefferson County Family Drug Court is under the leadership of the Honorable Alan Summers, in collaboration with UAB, the Jefferson County Department of Human Resources, Alabama Administrative Office of Courts and Casey Family Programs.
Additional community partners include Jefferson County Family Court, Oasis Counseling for Women and Children, Aletheia House, Lifeline Children’s Services, Beacon Addiction Treatment Center, and Gateway.