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Video:

• What I learned as a kid in jail

As a teenager, Ismael Nazario was sent to New York’s Rikers Island jail, where he spent 300 days in solitary confinement — all before he was ever convicted of a crime. Nazario tells his chilling story and suggests ways to help, rather than harm, teens in jail.

• How we’re priming some kids for college—and others for prison

Sociologist Alice Goffman spent six years in a troubled Philadelphia neighborhood and saw first-hand how teenagers of African-American and Latino backgrounds are funneled down the path to prison — sometimes starting with relatively minor infractions. In an impassioned talk she asks, “Why are we offering only handcuffs and jail time?”

Audio:

• Running away or skipping school could get a kid locked up. Now that’s changing

In Kentucky, running away from home or constantly skipping school could get a kid locked up in a juvenile hall for days. Those acts, called status offenses, aren't serious crimes, but for years Kentucky and other states treated them as though they were.

• Washington, D.C., prosecutors launch restorative justice program for juveniles

Prosecutors in D.C. are trying a new approach for juveniles on the wrong side of the law. They've launched a program that puts young people in touch with their victims to come up with a way forward.

Web:

• Coalition for Juvenile Justice

Website for the Coalition for Juvenile Justice

• Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Website for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention