Trauma-Informed Care for Douglas County Youth

Operation Youth Success supports juvenile justice reform, trauma-informed care, and community-based aid across Douglas County. Our work centers the voices of young people and the families, schools, and partners who walk alongside them.

Learn More About Us

2011

JDAI launched in Douglas County with the Annie E. Casey Foundation

8

Core JDAI strategies guiding detention reform

13–25

Age range of OYS Council youth representatives

Monthly

OYS Council meetings to share insight and guide progress

Our Work

Trauma Informed Care

Practices that recognize and respond to the impact of trauma on young people and families.

Community Based Aid

Local partnerships that connect youth and families to support close to home.

Families, Prevention & Schools

Workgroups engaging households, prevention programs, and school communities.

Resources & Lending Library

Materials and tools supporting trauma-informed care and community support.

Operation Youth Success serves as a community-wide effort to reshape how juvenile justice is approached in Douglas County. By bringing together stakeholders from across the region, the initiative encourages open conversations about what needs to change and how those changes can take root. The shared goal is a coordinated approach that supports young people while maintaining public safety, guided by voices from families, schools, and local partners working side by side toward a common vision. At the heart of this work is a commitment to trauma-informed care, recognizing that many young people enter the justice system carrying unseen burdens. Practices rooted in awareness and compassion help create environments where trust can grow and accountability can be meaningful. This approach emphasizes individualized support, empowering each young person with the resources and respect needed to build a path toward success rather than repeating cycles of harm. Prevention and early intervention form another essential layer of the mission. By identifying barriers that currently exist and addressing them before arrest or deeper involvement, the community can offer effective help at the moment it matters most. Outreach efforts, advocacy, and education work together to engage families and youth, ensuring that support reaches people where they are and reflects the realities of their lived experiences. Sustaining this vision requires ongoing collaboration through councils, task forces, and steering committees that meet regularly to review progress and refine strategy. Community surveys, public notes, and shared planning keep the effort transparent and responsive. Through newsletters, lending libraries, and resource sharing, the initiative continues to empower residents, represent youth voices, and advance a comprehensive model of care for the county.

Operation Youth Success is a community-driven effort to advance juvenile justice in Douglas County by bringing residents, families, schools, and local partners into shared conversations about how the system should evolve. Rather than working in isolation, the initiative gathers stakeholders across sectors to build a comprehensive and coordinated plan that reflects the real needs of young people. The goal is a system that maintains public safety while eliminating unnecessary involvement, so that youth are supported rather than sidelined as they grow.

At the heart of the work is a belief that young people deserve effective, compassionate, and individualized support that empowers them to succeed. Trauma-informed care, prevention, advocacy, and community-based aid are woven together to create an environment built on mutual trust and accountability. By centering the voices of youth and the families who walk alongside them, the effort aims to remove barriers that currently keep systems from engaging effectively. The result is a shared vision in which every young person has the opportunity to thrive.

Sustaining this work depends on ongoing public engagement and shared responsibility across the community. Steering committees, task forces, and council meetings serve as spaces where residents can learn, lend their perspective, and help shape policy in ways that reflect local priorities. Resources, libraries, newsletters, and regular updates keep the conversation open and the plan responsive as conditions change. Through these wide, collective conversations, the community builds a stronger and more just approach for the young people of Douglas County.