School Justice Project (SJP) is a legal services and advocacy organization serving older students with special education needs who are involved in DC's juvenile and criminal legal systems.
Access to Justice | Access to Education
-
Direct Representation
We empower students trapped in DC’s justice systems through direct representation. We help young people as they enter DC’s justice systems by informing them of their rights, providing tools to help them advocate for themselves, representing them for better court outcomes, and getting the special education opportunities they deserve. We assist them in successful reentry back into their communities.
-
Systemic Advocacy & Policy
We advocate for systems change in the education and justice systems. The relationship between the two systems is complicated, and we aim to build an equitable bridge between them by facilitating and improving cross-sector collaboration through strategic meetings, strong coalitions and critical counsel to help align priorities among sectors.
-
Community Outreach & Legal Training
We work directly with our community in the District of Columbia to increase understanding of education rights and barriers to education. By collaborating with community members – including educators, attorneys, and parents – we aim to inform and educate others on the fight for access to education. We do this by providing legal trainings to practitioners and “Know Your Education Rights” trainings to court-involved youth.
MJ’s Story
We met MJ nearly five years ago. He was a playful, outgoing, funny, and hopeful young man. Our Supervising Attorney, Rachel Russo, began working closely with him to ensure that his educational needs were met and that he was able to overcome the many barriers he was facing.
When we first met MJ, his love for learning and reading was apparent, even though he was locked up in an adult facility as a juvenile. Every time Rachel visited him in jail he would share all the details of the books he was reading. She began sending him books so he could read more, and their relationship developed from there. As their relationship developed, Rachel began to learn that MJ was not receiving the educational supports he needed to succeed. Over the course of her work with MJ, Rachel filed two different complaints, both of which resulted in compensatory education that he could use to help make up for the services that he had been denied over the years.
MJ began high school during the 2012-2013 school year. He faced a lot of barriers, and there were many times he could have made the decision to give up. But he persevered. This month, seven years later, he received his high school diploma, just days before being released home to the community. MJ made such an impression on his teachers and staff at the jail that the school held a graduation ceremony just for him. At the graduation ceremony, person after person spoke about the leadership and positivity MJ exhibited while in jail. For example, MJ realized that everyone was going through trauma and that talking about things could be therapeutic. Inspired and lifted up by his mentor, he decided to formalize these conversations. This year, he launched and began leading regular trauma circles in DC Jail.
As MJ has told us many times, having a special education attorney kept him going when he felt frustrated or overwhelmed. He has shared how much it meant to him to have Rachel in his corner all these years, and what it felt like knowing that she would keep believing in him and pushing the schools to do better. MJ plans to attend college and will use some of his compensatory education award to support his post-secondary education. He aspires to become a business owner, and he cannot wait to start the next chapter in his life.
