subject: What is Probation Boot camp? [print this page] Author: Kevin Jones Author: Kevin Jones
Boot Camp incorporates academic curriculum with fundamental military concepts. The mission of the educational component is to enable students to perform at grade level. The program focuses on English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. Some electives are offered. A high school equivalency program is also offered. Special educational services are provided cooperatively by the home district and the Angleton Independent School District. The military component is utilized to assist the student in accepting and respecting authority. Drill instructors oversee the movement and discipline of the students in a "boot camp" type fashion. Strict classroom rules, military drill and physical training help the students develop self-discipline. Boot Camp presents students who have had behavior problems in the school or the community with the opportunity to continue their education while gaining self-discipline and respect of authority. However, it is up to the student whether appropriate choices will be made which will ultimately determine their length of stay and the benefits of the program. For those students who do exhibit a willingness to conform to the regiment of Boot Camp, it is hoped that this ability to be successful will continue with them as they return to their home school district. Fines, restitution, and community service are common punishments for minor crimes. Fines are based on and taken from an offender's daily income. Restitution is a cash amount paid by the offender to the victim to make up for the victim's loss, like making an offender pay a portion of an injured victim's medical expenses. With community service, offenders pay back the community rather than a specific victim. Courts may order offenders to work for a certain number of hours in local public service organizations or for charitable groups that help their community. General and specific programming protocols are found in the Cadet Handbook, Parent Handbook and brochure. Specialized programming for sex offenders and substance abuse protocols are also valuable information to be reviewed by probation officers, treatment providers and parents. There are basically five primary objectives that juvenile boot camps strive to achieve. The first is deterrence, which is an attempt to scare juveniles into never committing another crime for fear of the consequences. The second is incapacitation, or the sheer physical inability to commit crimes. Rehabilitation is the third goal of boot camps, which focuses on restoring an individual's chances at becoming a more respectable member of society. The fourth objective is punishment in the hopes that it will teach the juvenile offender "a valuable lesson" in action and consequence. At this time it is still difficult to determine which components are critical to success and which are irrelevant. Unquestionably, more research is needed to indicate what can be accomplished with boot camp programs. As the amount of boot camp programs in the United States continues to grow, the issues demand further exploration. Despite the lack of hard evidence to their success, boot camp is a relatively young reform effort and still holds promise as we move through the next millennium.About the Author:
