The National Center for Youth in Custody (NC4YC) was launched in 2010 by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) in response to the call from the field for assistance, leadership and support to improve and reform youth detention and correction facilities and adult facilities housing youthful offenders. OJJDP collaborated with the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) to support NC4YC's training and technical assistance resources.

NC4YC is co-directed by the Council of Juvenile Correctional Administrators (CJCA) and the National Partnership of Juvenile Services (NJPS). NC4YC also is guided by a national Work Group of professionals, experts, researchers and youth and family representatives.

Mission and Objectives:

To advance the field of juvenile justice by providing training and technical assistance and by disseminating effective practices and approaches to the justice community. The center will strive to serve the range of facilities in which juveniles are placed, including adult facilities that confine juvenile offenders. The center emphasizes the rehabilitative goals of the juvenile justice system.

To support is mission, NC4YC has set for the following objectives:

• Deliver strategic, targeted, and measurable training and technical assistance directly to facilities that detain or confine youth.
• Identify, document, and promote effective, evidence-based approaches to working with youth in custody
• Expand the knowledge base and research on juvenile justice and best practices in detaining and confining youth.
• Create a resource community for juvenile justice practitioners, youth in custody, and families.