Welcome!
As we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the legislation that made Youth Court a reality in Tennessee, we're calling for your stories! Share with us, at our contact page today! We will publish your stories in 2020, to celebrate this milestone. (VIDEO: Eric Mauldin, Assistant D.A.,18th Judicial District, TN.)
We plant, nurture, and grow opportunities for teens to change their lives and the lives of others.
We support Youth (or Teen) Courts throughout the state of Tennessee with funding, training of both adult and youth volunteers, educational events, technical assistance, site visits and data collection.
Teenagers who volunteer to sit on the Youth Court decide the sentence for other teens who admitted to committing an offense. These teen volunteers base their sentence on the principles of Restorative Justice.
Our Mission
To spur the comprehensive and statewide development of youth court programs by:
- Expanding and supporting youth courts as effective, evidence-based, peer-driven juvenile justice alternative - and -
- Promoting youth court programs as an important feature of juvenile justice services in Tennessee that seek to improve outcomes for all youth in our communities.
Get Involved
Youth court programs would not be successful without the hundreds of volunteers - mostly lawyers - who act as mentors and advisors to youth court programs and the teens who volunteer their time and wisdom to act as members of the courts.
Contact us today, and "be the change."