Juveniles get the chance to change their lives through art

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - On Tuesday, the Pennington County States Attorneys office announced that their juvenile diversion program received a national grant to help juveniles in the system.

Pennington County is one of five programs nationally to receive a $50,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

The Just Us Mural Project, or JUMP, is a program for 300 juvenile participants to focus on creating art and reflect on what put these youths in the situation they are in.

”Its a great opportunity for young people to self reflect on the behavior that got them there. Also to try something new, create a new skill that they might have, or they might not have discovered yet. Previously we had great outcomes with young people not getting into trouble again, and we expect that to happen again,” said Kim Morsching, juvenile diversion director at the Pennington County states attorneys office.

The program will involve all participants working together to complete 16 murals, and when completed, the art will be put on display for the participants to share with their families and the community.

“Art is one of those powerful healing tools that really reaches different groups in the community and the students will be able to express their own experiences in their artwork,” said Melissa Nelson, education director for the Dahl Arts Center.

The project is scheduled to start November 2023 and finish in March of 2025.

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