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An upcoming OJJDP videoconference will focus on promising approaches to reducing juvenile status offenders' risk of more serious offending. "Addressing the Needs of Juvenile Status Offenders and Their Families," scheduled for Thursday, January 18, 2007, from 2 to 4 p.m. ET, is sponsored in partnership with the American Bar Association's Commission on At-Risk Youth, the Department of Health and Human Services' Family and Youth Services Bureau, and Eastern Kentucky University.

Status offenses are nondelinquent/noncriminal offenses that are considered illegal only for juveniles (e.g., truancy, running away, possessing alcohol, curfew violations, being "ungovernable"). In 2004, 18 percent of all juvenile arrests involved status offenses. Research has clearly linked status offending behavior with later delinquency.

This national videoconference is intended to raise awareness about status offending and to highlight legislative reforms, policies, programs, and practices that have shown promise in effectively intervening with status offenders and their families to reduce further offending and steer these youth toward a positive future. The target audience for the videoconference includes policymakers, judges, attorneys, law enforcement, juvenile justice, child welfare, social services, other youth-serving agencies, and parents and youth.

The videoconference will be available for online viewing from desktop computers and group viewing at satellite downlink sites. For additional information and to register, visit www.trc.eku.edu/jj/conference.asp?confid=33.