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Division of Juvenile Justice Facilities Fact Sheet

N.A Chaderjian

N. A. Chaderjian School opened in 1991. The institution is located in Stockton, California at 7650 South Newcastle Road. Known as “Chad”, it housed male youths 14 to 25 years of age in living units comprised of individual rooms. It is named for N.A. “Chad: Chaderjian, a career probation officer and the secretary of the Youth and Adult Correctional Agency under Governor George Deukemejian at the time of his sudden death in 1988. 

O.H. Close

O.H. Close Youth Correctional Facility opened in 1966 as the O.H. Close School for Boys. Located in Stockton, in San Joaquin County, adjacent to Chad, it housed male youths 14 to 25 years of age in living units comprised of dormitories. The facility is named for O.H. Close, a former superintendent at the Preston School of Industry. O.H. Close youth and staff transferred operations to N.A. Chaderjian effective June 30, 2022. It remained open through June 2023 for some rehabilitative and vocational training uses like the Last Mile Coding program.

Ventura

Ventura Youth Correctional Facility located in Camarillo, in Ventura County, is a clinic and program facility that provides secure treatment services for males and females. This facility is comprised of brick bungalow living units with individual rooms. Located at 3100 Wright Road, Camarillo, the facility opened in 1962 when the Ventura School for Girls moved from its original 1913 location. A reception center and clinic was established in 1964. A change in the law resulted in fewer female commitments, so in 1970 the school became co-educational. In 1990, Ventura opened a camp program and instituted the department’s first female firefighting crew. 

Pine Grove

The Pine Grove Youth Conservation Camp opened in 1945 in Amador County and is the oldest continuously operating fire camp in California. Training for male youth aged 18 and older is provided by CAL FIRE. The youth are certified to engage in wildland firefighting operations. Pine Grove transferred from DJJ to CDCR oversight effective January, 2023 and functions under contractual agreements between counties and CDCR. PGYCC has a capacity for 100 youth firefighters.  

Did you know?

  • In 1997, CYA institutions and camps names were changed to include “Youth Correctional.”
  • In a 2005 reorganization of the California corrections agencies, the CYA, first established in 1941, became the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) within the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
  • Between 2007 and 2011, DJJ closed seven of eleven facilities, the last in 2011 with the closures of Preston Youth Correctional Facility in Ione and the Southern Youth Correctional Reception Center and Clinic in Norwalk.  Preston was the second oldest juvenile facility in the state, in operation since 1894.
  • A complete history of California juvenile justice can be found at https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/juvenile-justice/history/