Polk County Juvenile Drug Court: Recommendations for the Future

Abstract

Polk County Juvenile Drug Court (“PCJDC”) has been operating since 2001, and has built a solid reputation within the state by addressing juvenile offenders with accompanying substance abuse problems. This paper examines the PCJDC with the hopes of identifying both what has made it successful and where improvements can be made to the program. Through interviews and surveys with current and former PCJDC staff and a review of current academic research, we offer some insight to best practices of similar programs and how they could be applied within the PCJDC program.