Bipartisan commission votes down resolution to close IYC Kewanee
AFSCME is working to reverse the Rauner Administration's plan to close IYC Kewanee, pointing out that there is no viable plan to provide counseling, education and other services to the special populations of adjudicated youth who are currently housed there. The union's efforts got a big boost when the bipartisan legislative Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (COGFA) voted to reject the closure on May 3.
While the COGFA vote is only advisory, it sends a clear message that the Rauner Administration should reconsider its closure plan. AFSCME has called on CMS to freeze all vacancies in DOC and DJJ to ensure that IYC-Kewanee employees will have the opportunity to secure other positions if the closure does go forward.
“We applaud the commission for rejecting this closure,” said AFSCME Council 31 Deputy Director Mike Newman. “The fact is that the closure of IYC Kewanee is about cutting expenditures and cutting important services—not improving lives.”
Most of the 200 employees at IYC Kewanee would be laid off if the plan moves forward, resulting in a $43 million economic impact on the surrounding area. The Rauner Administration plans to close Kewanee quickly—within the next few months—but has not offered a plan for reinvesting in programs or improving the lives of its seriously troubled youth.
“Our goals are to successfully rehabilitate the youth in our care and give them the best possible chance at a successful future,” Shannon McDermott said at a COGFA hearing on March 30. McDermott is an AFSCME Local 801 member and teacher at the center’s school. “Our education program successfully helps the youth reach those goals. In fact, 35 percent of our students leave Kewanee with a high school diploma—that’s the highest rate in the state.”
IYC Kewanee was built in 2001 as a treatment facility for acutely mentally ill youth and those with problem sexual behaviors. In 2013 Kewanee became the only maximum security facility in DJJ.
“Our buildings were designed with the best physical layout to manage these unique populations,” testified Tod Williams, president of AFSCME Local 801. “Kewanee is PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) certified with more than 400 closed-circuit cameras to prevent sexual victimization, and it has the only 24-hour health care unit in the state. When you look at what our facility has to offer, we don’t understand this decision.”
AFSCME Local 801 member Heather Nolan also testified to the commission. AFSCME members who work at IYC Kewanee and their families came to the hearing and were supported by more than 1,000 concerned community members. Their message was heard loud and clear.