Uniformed guards at the back of the class are the only giveaway that this course is being taught inside the San Mateo County juvenile hall.
It’s part of a growing effort to offer college courses — with credit — for locked-up youth throughout California’s justice system.
Katie Bliss, higher education coordinator at the San Francisco-based Youth Law Center, spent time in the San Mateo County juvenile hall as a teenager, then went on to launch Project Change in 2015 while teaching English at the College of San Mateo. Project Change Program Manager Nick Jasso was also incarcerated as a teen. He later attended the College of San Mateo, then graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with the support of Project Change.
One of the students who will be housed at the San Mateo County Youth Services Center until he turns 25 is embracing the educational opportunities. The teenager graduated from high school a few months ago and jumped right into the college curriculum, taking classes in communications, business and kinesiology. The teen is suddenly envisioning a chance to someday to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, a campus he once visited while living in a nearby group home.
“We know that students are not going to be in a juvenile facility forever,” Browne said. “We want to make sure that they are prepared.”
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