JCPC schedules monitoring, flags referral pilot on hold and highlights youth events

At the Dec. 18 meeting the Buncombe County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council set dates for monitoring activities, reviewed program and pilot updates, and heard community partners promote upcoming youth events.

The monitoring committee said orientation for monitoring teams will be held virtually on Jan. 9 at 10:00 a.m.; members were encouraged to join program monitoring visits to learn about funded services. "It's a wonderful way to get an orientation to find out what monitoring is," one member said, noting the hands‑on learning value.

Staff updated the council that the proposed universal referral pilot — intended to let NC Join and NC Allies exchange referral data and reduce duplicative intake — is on hold while technical glitches are resolved. Programs were reminded to update their information in the DJJ service directory every six months so they will appear correctly if the pilot resumes.

Community partners reported events and program updates: Umoja's youth mental‑health conference is scheduled for Dec. 30 at the YMI; James Allegretto promoted a Youth Resilience Summit for March 18 at AB Tech and invited council partners to attend; staff also noted statewide RFP opportunities for intensive intervention services with late‑February deadlines that require local JCPC letters of support.

Council members discussed program staffing transitions, enrollment challenges, and an early signal of increased juvenile detention bed days this year; staff said they will dig deeper into admission drivers and cost effects in coming months.