1338 Tiffin Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870
(419) 627-7611 Fax: (419) 627-6672
Robert Wikel, Superintendent of Corrections
Eric Mathews, Program Director
The Northern Ohio Juvenile Community Corrections Facility opened in 2004. It is a 30 bed community corrections facility serving boys ages 12-18. Youth can stay in the program past the age of 18 depending on the circumstances. The facility serves a 5 -county catchment area including Erie, Huron, Seneca, Sandusky, and Ashland Counties. However, referrals are accepted from all Juvenile Courts in Ohio. NOJCCF is funded by the Ohio Department of Youth Services as a minimally secure facility that serves as an alternative to a commitment to the Department of Youth Services.
Mission
It is the mission of the Northern Ohio Juvenile Community Corrections Facility to serve juvenile residents, their families, and their communities. This facility offers a safe and secure, nurturing environment. Treatment consists of specialized programs facilitated by a dedicated team. The treatment is designed to fit the needs of the residents and families along with the expectations of their local juvenile courts. It is the center’s hope and goal that upon completion of the multi-phased programming, the residents will lead a more positive, productive, lawful, and healthy lifestyle.
Accreditations
The NOJCCF is an ACA accredited facility. The American Correctional Association was founded in 1870 to promote improvement in the management of all correctional agencies through the administration of an accreditation program with the ongoing development and revision of relevant, useful standards designed to improve conditions of confinement. The standards serve as the foundation for the accreditation process.
The facility became accredited with 100% compliance in all standards of operation for a juvenile community residential facility. This honor demonstrates the dedication and professionalism of the facility and its staff to help fulfill the facility’s overall purpose and mission.
The Governing Board
Robert C. DeLamatre
Lead Judge
Erie County Juvenile Court
Timothy L. Cardwell
Judge
Huron County
Brad Smith
Judge
Sandusky County
Jay A. Meyer
Judge
Seneca County
Karen DeSanto Kellogg
Judge
Ashland County
Treatment Services
Thinking for a Change
Thinking for a Change, or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, is a main focus of our daily program. Residents learn how their beliefs and values lead to thoughts, which lead to behaviors, which lead to consequences – positive or negative. Residents are presented with skills sets and learn how to apply them to past situations as well as how they need to fit into their lives once they leave the facility.
Thinking Errors
Thinking Errors, or Cognitive Distortions, is another important focus in our facility. The thinking error philosophy utilized by this facility is adapted from the works of Stanton Saminow, PhD. Residents are presented with eleven common thinking errors as well as ways to avoid them by changing their thinking prior to a negative situation.
Aggression Replacement Training
Aggression Replacement Training (ART) is used as a model for Anger Management. Residents are taught how episodes of anger occur as a cycle and that they have the power to recognize where they are in a cycle during a situation. Youth are able to determine what works best for them to stop aggressive behavior and how to manage behavior.
Victim Awareness
Along with repairing the connection to the community, Victim Awareness is another important component in Restorative Justice. Residents are presented with several types of delinquent behaviors and explore how each type of crime has different and real effects on victims, as well as the ripple effect on families and the community.
Living Skills
Residents learn various skills, including budgeting, banking, résumé and job hunting, managing a household, as well as buying a car. Youth learn how these skills are important and necessary in every day living situations. These skills are practiced throughout the program, for example, the facility’s token economy allows residents to earn and spend CCF Bucks and on home passes where they are required to acquire, complete, and submit job applications.
Specialized Treatment Services
Sex Offender Treatment
Jim Geller specializes in sex offender treatment group. A majority of the treatment in this group comes out of Pathways for Sexual Offenders. This group consists of committing offense, cycles, and relapse prevention planning.
Chemical Dependency Treatment
Renee Ruffin specializes in Chemical Dependency Group. This group also uses Pathways as well as other interventions. A weekly AA group is held at the building as well. This treatment focuses on a cognitive approach to drug and alcohol treatment.
Trauma Treatment
The CCF offers group and individual trauma and grief therapy. We utilize Trauma and Grief Component Therapy for Adolescents which is specially designed to work with the juvenile justice population. This group allows adolescents to work through traumatic experiences, including distressing circumstances of the death of loved ones, grieving painful losses, and promoting adaptive developmental progression. We offer the flexibility to be able to tailor implementation of this program to meet a resident’s specific needs, strengths, developmental level, circumstances, and informed wishes guided by assessment data and professional judgment.
Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA)
The Prison Rape Elimination Act of September 4, 2003, requires all confinement institutions, both public, and private to create safer environments for inmates and staff to reduce institutional violence. The final National Standards to prevent, detect, and respond to prison rape, were released by the United States Department of Justice on May 17, 2012.
The Northern Ohio Juvenile Community Corrections Facility is committed to complying with all provisions of the federally mandated Prison Rape Elimination Act and establishes a ZERO TOLERANCE toward all forms of sexual abuse and sexual harassment and will provide for safe practices related to the prevention, detection, reduction and punishment of all sexual assaults.
Sexual conduct between staff and juveniles, volunteers, or contract personnel and juveniles, as well as juvenile to juvenile, regardless of consensual status, is prohibited and subject to administrative and criminal disciplinary sanctions.
It is the policy of the NOJCCF that any staff member may receive a Third Party report (parent, guardian, minister, etc.) verbally, in writing, or anonymously. If you need to report an alleged sexual assault, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment claim, please use the documents to the right.