Ohio Department of Youth Services
Public SafetyOhio, United States501-1000 Employees
The Ohio Department of Youth Services is the state's juvenile corrections agency within the public safety sector. It is statutorily authorized to confine felony offenders ages 10 to 21 who have been adjudicated and committed by Ohio’s county juvenile courts, with programming designed to address criminological and behavioral needs during confinement. The department operates three facilities, each running a year-round school that provides general education and vocational opportunities. DYS supports a broad spectrum of services beyond its facilities, funding and coordinating over 664 direct service programs that collectively offer more than 88,000 youth opportunities annually in prevention, diversion, residential treatment, and community-based care for mental health, sex offending, and substance use issues. Its mission is to improve Ohio’s future by habilitating youth and empowering families and communities, with a vision of a safer Ohio one youth, one family, and one community at a time. The department is based in Columbus, Ohio.