Interview with Dr. Tom Blomberg by Jennifer Slivka

When the Florida DOE awarded a new contract to Florida State University (FSU) in 1998, they wanted someone to do Quality Assurance (QA) reviews of educational programs in juvenile justice facilities statewide. But for Dr. Tom Blomberg, this was not good enough.

"There needs to be an ongoing commitment to research," said Blomberg. "I couldn't find any consensus of what was good research and what was bad research."

According to Blomberg, scholars and researchers could not agree whether standards were a good idea. Many believed that codifying education would undermine creativity, that it was too subjective, an art form not to be interfered with. Blomberg, who is currently the Sheldon L. Messinger Professor of Criminology and Acting Dean of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at FSU, had different ideas about the matter and decided to put them in his proposal for the FSU contract with the DOE.

On June 1, 1998, the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at FSU began a discretionary project with the Florida DOE to perform QA reviews, provide technical assistance and conduct research related to over 200 of Florida's juvenile justice educational programs. This program was named the Juvenile Justice Educational Enhancement Program (JJEEP). Blomberg took what he had applied to justice agencies and then applied it to JJEEP.

"My old proposal and No Child Left Behind (NCLB) correspond, and what pleases me is that the federal government is taking an initiative, talking about scientifically-based research and peer reviews. I feel we can make progress," said Blomberg. "Since 1998, we've raised the bar so it's more difficult to get through quality assurances, and every year these programs steadily improve."

Although Florida has a large degree of privatization, Blomberg said those private institutions have supported this movement as well. Both public and private institutions are being held accountable.

"These reforms are to be applauded and it would be great if we can implement these reforms," he said. "These youth are lost without it. Thousands and thousands of cases show these children suffer disadvantages; half are designated ESE (exceptional student education) and have chronic histories of suspension and expulsion. These kids never made it in our schools, but now they become attached to school and make progress."

With any reform, bureaucratic and political obstacles inevitably occur. According to Blomberg, policies in the past have not been based on research as much as opinion, which are not necessarily valid. "I've often said there is a great divide between researchers and policymakers, they never seem to connect. One challenge JJEEP faces is helping policymakers make better decisions."

But when it comes to young people in trouble, there is more of a consensus than not, said Blomberg.

The biggest problem was the "Get Tough Era" that undermined the treatment of education, he said. Americans were fed up with crime and violence and thought they had to get tough with our nation's troubled youth. More children were treated like adults and education and treatment had more of a punitive focus.

"At least in the juvenile area, if you don't prepare them and deal with their issues, they'll just be recycled again and again," said Blomberg. One of the focuses of JJEEP is community reintegration. According to Blomberg, two-thirds of medium-range kids in committed programs (usually a nine-month stay, roughly 16,000 kids per year), receive 50 percent greater likelihood of returning to schools. "I'm very excited about those aspects."

He maintains that Florida doesn't have enough aftercare. A standard transition problem that reoccurs is when the school does not want the previously incarcerated youth to return and the youth is forever labeled as a problem. "We're trying to get them back in school," said Blomberg. "Small steps, but the cumulative effect is that we're taking it forward."

A prominent theory in criminology is the Life Course Theory, which looks at life course development and continuity issues.

"If you backtrack, these youth are problem kids and if you fast forward they turn into adult criminals," he said. "The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior." Based on JJEEP's 2003 research that has yet to be published, Blomberg said there could be an earlier turning point for these children than 16 years of age. "Once you develop cause and effect relations, you can develop some degrees of measures."

The JJEEP database is capable of providing a variety of reports to assist programs, providers, school districts, and other interested parties in understanding factors relating to the quality of juvenile justice education in Florida. "We're able to analyze trends which we couldn't do 10 years ago," he said.

Blomberg attributes JJEEP's successes in Florida to the "wonderful and dedicated staff of 30" and the receptivity and eagerness of all involved in juvenile justice. One of the tasks JJEEP strives to achieve is getting certified teachers in the classroom and making sure they are teaching their area of expertise. JJEEP also recognizes teaching excellence and teacher contribution by selecting a juvenile justice teacher of the year, in addition to conducting statewide conferences for juvenile justice educators. "No teacher is all-informed, but we do have some brilliant teachers out there and we can learn from them as well," said Blomberg.

A future challenge will be recognizing resource scarcity and coming up with strategies for continuous improvement. Blomberg believes that programs need to be more efficient and must avoid making repetitive mistakes by increasing the reliance on data-driven policies.

"We are aware of the bottom line. We've got to become smart, use technology, use data in relation to values we want to achieve and of things that don't work, we have to improve them," said Blomberg. "We don't have much of a choice, but I'm optimistic about it."

Often the education of neglected, delinquent and at-risk children is given to administrators who do not have much experience with the issues involved and the needs of the target population. Blomberg would point those administrators to a university to find out what organizational structures are out there, what experts are saying, and what other people are doing in the field. Experts at a university can offer advice but also know where to direct the administrator for further information.

For further information on JJEEP's program and practices, please visit www.jjeep.org or contact Dr. Tom Blomberg by e-mail at tgblomberg@aol.com.

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