Late last year Quiz Worx was presented with a unique job offer: to help create visual rehabilitation stimuli for the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). In October we met with a DJJ worker named Geoff Wilkinson whose expertise was Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) rehabilitation. In that first meeting he laid out his vision: a non-literacy, highly visual, worksheet based rehabilitation ‘pathway’ program for juvenile offenders. Quiz Worx had never attempted a project like this but were willing to give it a go.

Quiz Worx is a childrens ministry, and as such is concerned with affecting the lives of young people in godly ways. The gospel is the most important way but the way we care for others is an implication of the gospel we proclaim. Our prayer is that these juvenile offenders find freedom from alcohol and other drugs through the AOD program. Even more so, we pray they find freedom from the even bigger problem of sin, through the Lord Jesus Christ.

The following is an interview with DJJ officer Geoff Wilkinson:

INTERVIEW WITH GEOFF WILKINSON (DJJ)

How did you come to work at the Department of Juvenile Justice?
I began working with Juvenile Justice in October 2008 as the manager for drug and alcohol intervention programs for NSW. This role entails the development of offense focussed interventions for juvenile offenders as well as the staff training for anyone involved in the delivery of these programs. Prior to working at Juvenile Justice I worked with the Department of Corrective Services designing and developing similar programs for adult offenders. The programs I contributed to developing during that role are now used in criminal justice settings nationwide. Prior to working in the Australian criminal justice system I was involved in addressing addictions and criminal behaviour in rehabilitation centres in Mexico.
I lived and worked in Mexico and other parts of Latin America for 14 years. I was involved in Christian and missions related ministries. I left Australia in 1987 aged 18 and set out to commence several rehabilitation centres in the slum areas of Mexico City, where I lived for 6 years. I would collect men from the streets living in dire and desperate situations, and who struggled with chronic addictions and offered them an alternative life – a chance at hearing and responding to the Gospel, and learning some new life skills. I taught these men new life skills such as carpentry and furniture making. This allowed us to make financial ends meet and to enhance the prospects of employment when rehab had finished. These rehabilitation centres were later managed and run by Victory Outreach (David Wilkerson) ministries, and still are alive and running well to this day.
I attended bible college and graduated in 1994 and later became an ordained minister with the Baptist church in Mexico. I became involved in a church planting project in the city of Guadalajara (Mexico). It all began very slowly with just a few people coming to salvation via home bible studies during the week. However the ministry grew and after several years we were baptising new converts almost every week! I remained as pastor in that congregation until the leadership had been developed sufficiently to take over. This congregation continues, and several other churches have been planted by Mexican nationals that were sent forth from within that church.

What is it like working with young offenders?
My first experience working in the Australian prison system was as a counsellor at Parramatta gaol. Needless to say that the environment of a prison especially one as old as Parramatta, has a daunting and intimidating feel to it. I recall one of the first encounters with a young offender’s plight in the prison system was with a fellow aged merely 18 who had spent many years in the juvenile system but who had now committed offences as an adult and had been sent to ‘the big house’. Being young, weak, and smart mouthed sets you up as a prime target for being assaulted, sexually abused, and being manipulated. I met many young men such as him, who for fear of other predators surrounding them, would come to my office and seek refuge during the times that they were released from their cell. I began to see that there was so much that could be done to intervene with young people in their situation, far more than could be done with hardened criminally minded adults. Although I worked for years in the adult prison system, I had a heart for the young offenders and wanted to see rehabilitation programs designed for them that would meet their needs and show them alternative ways to think and live.

Many offenders have extremely disadvantaged situations as compared to the majority in society. They face poverty, poor education, lack of parental guidance, and social isolation. I recall boarding a bus near central station after having been at the juvenile justice office in the city where several young offenders had attended a group. These same teenagers attempted to board the bus along with other many school children and were ordered to “get off the bus!” The teens became very angry and asked why they had to leave when all the other kids got to stay. They were simply told that they knew exactly why because they were trouble. After some discussion they were permitted to travel, however it is life situations such as these that create a sense of social isolation and hopelessness in teens such as these, encouraging them to choose criminal behaviour as a payback to society. This is not always the case, but it is common.

Teens such as these whether male or female, can and must be offered multi systemic programs designed to help them break the cycle they are in and help with other issues such as addictions.

How did this AOD program come about?
Several years ago the auditor general conducted an audit into offender rehabilitation. This audit essentially concluded that much more had to be done to address offending behaviour than was being done at that time. There is an abundance of literature relating to how best address criminal thinking and offending behaviour and many methods have been trialled around the world in similar settings to those found in Australia.

The Department of Juvenile Justice in NSW created a job description and position aimed at addressing addictions (drug and alcohol) related crime. I applied for the position and started working in this role in October 2008.

I then began to address all of the recommendations that were listed by the auditor and reviewers and came up with a comprehensive treatment pathway. This treatment pathway consists of three stages. Stage 1 is an educational program aimed at teaching young offenders about the realities and dangers of different substances. Stage 2 is a profiling program designed to create a profile of a young person’s treatment needs, and stage 3 is a treatment program designed to address those needs that are discovered in stage 2.

There have been many contributors to the development of these 3 programs, such as the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) at the UNSW, the Australian Drug Foundation, and also QUIZWORX.

What is the aim of this program?
The aim of the treatment pathway is to deliver a comprehensive offence focussed curricula and treatment regime to young offenders, assisting them take make pro social decisions and live balanced lifestyles free from addictions and crime.

We at Quiz Worx were definitely surprised to be approached for this work. What made you come to us?
Quizworx develops excellent products that are used to deliver the most important message – the Gospel. The knowledge that Quizworx has around adapting stories and messages for a diversity of ages is completely applicable to the delivery of the crime intervention message that is required to be delivered by the Department of Juvenile Justice. The message is clear and unchangeable, but how it is delivered is of great importance if we want the maximum attention and attendance by the target audience. Quizworx have been able to develop artwork and concepts that are extremely well received by juvenile offenders. It is also the first of its kind, in that this program does not require literacy in order to participate, it is also completely transferable cross culturally, and is easy to use by the facilitator.

This program will be offered not only throughout NSW, but has already been requested by other states around the country. We anticipate that this product will create great interest in the crime intervention industry worldwide.