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Division of Youth Services
The CDHS Division of Youth Services (DYS) provides for the care and supervision of youth committed by the District Court to the custody of CDHS. DYS operates 12 secure youth centers that serve youth between the ages of 10-21 who are pre-adjudicated or committed. In addition to residential programming, DYS administers juvenile parole services throughout Colorado.
- DYS organization and leadership
Organization
The Division of Youth Services (DYS) is part of the Residential and Reintegration Services area of the Colorado Department of Human Services.
The DYS Central Office comprises four specialized units, each managed by an associate director: Youth Center Operations, Regional and Community Partnerships, Health and Education Services and Administrative Operations. These four units enable the treatment and services for the youth within our care. Additionally, the Central Office oversees assessment services, quality assurance, restorative justice programs and record-keeping.
DYS youth centers provide services for youth in detention and commitment. Detention youth are typically awaiting a court hearing after being accused of a crime, and commitment youth have been sentenced by the court to receive longer-term care and treatment from DYS after being found responsible for a crime. These youth centers are operated by youth center directors and supervised by the associate director of youth center operations.
Supervised by the associate director of regional and community partnerships, DYS’s four regional offices—Central, Northeast, Southern and Western—provide case management and parole supervision for committed youth. Each youth is assigned a client manager who develops their case plan and eventually serves as their parole officer. These offices also manage regional contracts, community partnerships, residential programming and Senate Bill 91-94 programs.
Health and education services are vital to the Division’s mission and are provided to every youth by highly qualified professionals at each center. Under the associate director of health and education services, staff deliver comprehensive physical health care, behavioral health support, and substance use services. Our robust educational programs ensure youth continue their learning and academic growth while in our care.
Administrative operations, led by the associate director of administrative operations, additionally provides support from the DYS Central Office for record keeping, policy management, data management, people-centered practices, systems administration and food services. They also serve as the liaison for HR and the Division of Facilities Management.
View the DYS organizational chart.
Leadership
Alex Stojsavljevic, DYS Director
Alex Stojsavljevic was appointed Director of the Division of Youth Services in October 2025. As the director, Alex oversees a complex juvenile justice system focusing on prevention, habilitation, and treatment services for justice-involved youth. In this role, he has complete oversight of the Division’s juvenile detention system, commitment programming, and parole services. He is committed to protecting Colorado communities by ensuring youth have the opportunities to obtain the skills, knowledge, treatment, and tools they need to be successful.
Prior to joining DYS, Alex served as the leader of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) Management Office at the United States Department of Justice. Alex also held many roles at the Ohio Department of Youth Services in their juvenile correctional facilities, as well as their central administration.
Natalie Chrastil, DYS Deputy Director
Dr. Natalie A. Chrastil has served as an Associate Director of the Division of Youth Services since April, 2017. As the Associate Director, Dr. Chrastil has overseen the Administrative Operations for the Division as well as all Youth Centers Statewide. Dr. Chrastil holds a Doctorate in Public Policy and Administration with emphasis on Justice Administration. Her commitment to Safety, Quality and Innovation aligns with the direction of the Division of Youth Services.
Prior to joining DYS, Dr. Chrastil served as a Deputy Director of the Division of Criminal Investigation, Cheyenne, Wyoming and served on many National and Federal Committees.
Tammy Schneiderman, DYS Associate Director, Regional and Community Partnerships
Tammy Schneiderman, M.Ed., Ed.S., LPC was appointed as Associate Director in February of 2025. As the Associate Director, she provides oversight and leadership to the four DYS Regional Offices, the Colorado Youth Detention Continuum, the Client Management System, Contract Residential Program Operations, and Client Services including youth and family services as well as the juvenile parole system.
Prior to being appointed to this position, Tammy served at the Client Services Coordinator and then the Central Region Director for DYS. Tammy also held many roles in juvenile contract residential programs as well as adult residential treatment.
Ashley Tunstall, DYS Associate Director, Health and Education Services
Ashley Tunstall, MPA, MA, LPC, PhD, was appointed the Associate Director of Health Services in December 2023 with an expanded scope in March 2026 to include Education Services. In this role, Dr. Tunstall provides oversight of Health and Education Services within the Division for all statewide secure youth centers. This also includes overseeing all mental health, medical, psychology, dental, substance use treatment and sex offense specific services, and all contracted partnerships for physician, psychiatry, and medical administration services.
Prior to being appointed to this position, Dr. Tunstall provided oversight and leadership for behavioral health and medical services. She has held many roles within the criminal legal system, including within child welfare and juvenile assessment center operations. Her current teaching and research interests include the relationship between trauma and aggression, and trauma-responsive secure environments.
Michael McAuliffe, DYS Interim Associate Director, Administrative Operations
Michael McAuliffe, JD, was appointed Interim Associate Director in 2026 and provides oversight of Administrative Operations for the Division, including policy, legislative affairs, records, food services, data management and analysis, facilities management, and systems administration.
Prior to his interim role, Michael served as the Policy Director for the Division, and has served in public service with the state of Colorado for over ten years.
- Contact information
Colorado Department of Human Services
Division of Youth Services, Administrative Support Offices
4255 S. Knox Court
Denver, CO 80236
Phone: 303-866-7345 | Fax 303-866-7344
Visit the DYS residential youth centers pages for youth center contact information.
Visit the DYS regional offices and administrative support page for office contact information.
Media inquiries may be directed to:
Haysel Hernandez
Director of Communications
303-902-9524
Haysel.Hernandez@state.co.us- Administrative Services
Administrative Services provides support in carrying out the mission, goals and objectives of the organization. Visit the Administrative Services page to learn more.
- Juvenile detention
DYS is responsible for the operation of Colorado's juvenile detention "continuum." The continuum consists of community-based screening to determine detention needs, community supervision strategies, and secure detention in youth centers operated by DYS. In Colorado, detention serves two purposes:
- To ensure that a youth accused of delinquency appears for hearings ordered by the court.
- To sentence adjudicated youth for a period of up to 45 days as a sanction by the court.
The detention continuum begins with screening and assessment services for any youth referred for detention admission. The screening process is managed by each of the state's 22 judicial districts and is designed to determine the most appropriate setting for each youth. In most cases, youth screened will be served and monitored through non-secure, community-based services such as day reporting, electronic home monitoring, and/or enhanced community supervision. For those youth whom the screen reveals has the potential to run, is a risk to others, or otherwise is likely to violate conditions of community supervision, he or she can be detained in one of the eight secure juvenile detention centers operated by DYS. Six State-owned and -operated youth centers serve only detention youth; the Gilliam Youth Services Center in Denver, the Marvin W. Foote Youth Services Center in Centennial, the Prairie Vista Youth Services Center in Brighton, the Rocky Mountain Youth Services Center in Lakewood, the Pueblo Youth Services Center in Pueblo, and the Zebulon Pike Youth Services Center in Colorado Springs. Two secure State-operated youth centers are multi-purpose, serving detention and committed youth: these are the Platte Valley and Grand Mesa Youth Services Centers.
All youth detained or placed under supervision programs in the community receive a hearing before a magistrate within 48 hours. For those held in secure detention, a decision is made whether the youth will be sent home on a community supervision and treatment plan or if further detention is warranted.
The detention model has advanced significantly in the last few decades. In 1991, the legislature expanded beyond the facility programming with the provision of community-based detention services through the Colorado Youth Detention Continuum (CYDC) program. Legislators noted that rising detention populations and projections for substantial future increases would be a significant operational burden and enormously expensive if youth centers were the sole solution to provide necessary supervision. A critical philosophical foundation of the legislation is the belief that on any given day, youth are housed in a secure detention center who could be safely supervised in the community given the appropriate level of services. The bill was designed to create options for community supervision of youth offenders while they await court hearings and/or the disposition of their cases. Detention screening and assessment were added to the statute in the ensuing years, providing a mechanism for Districts to ensure appropriate detention referrals and management of their allocated beds.
- Commitment services
Colorado Statute allows the District Court several sentencing options when committing juveniles to DYS. These options include non-mandatory sentences, allowing CDHS the ability to bring youth before the juvenile parole board when they have completed treatment, and mandatory sentences, where youth are required to remain in residential placement for a minimum of one year. Violent and repeat offenders receive mandatory sentences of no less than one year. Aggravated juvenile offenders can be sentenced to up to seven years.
DYS operates a full continuum of services for committed youth through a Continuum of Care model. The Continuum of Care guides the activities of the Division throughout the commitment process from the initial assessment, to residential placement, through transition and parole supervision and services. The stages of the commitment process are outlined below.
Statute mandates that DYS provide a comprehensive assessment for all youth within the first 30 days of their commitment. The assessment includes criminogenic risk and needs, mental health, education and vocation, medical, and in some cases psychological/neuropsychological evaluation. Following the completion of the assessment, a multi-disciplinary team meets to discuss the youth and family's needs, placement type, and future transition plan.
Almost without exception, youth are moved to a permanent placement following the assessment meeting. DYS provides residential treatment services to committed youth in either State-operated secure programs or private contract placements. Individualized treatment and transition plans are developed for each youth. Residential placements offer a variety of services that include education, vocation training, medical services, individual, group and family treatment, recreation, gender-specific treatment, transition services, and as needed, substance abuse and/or offense-specific treatment.State-operated secure treatment programs
DYS operates several secure youth centers that serve committed youth exclusively. These programs are designed to treat the highest-risk, highest-need committed youth. DYS also operates multipurpose youth centers that, in addition to acting as juvenile detention facilities, provide longer-term treatment to committed youth.
Private contract programs
DYS contracts with a variety of private providers for community programs that range from staff-secure treatment programs to foster homes licensed through the State. Placement alternatives include residential child care centers, group homes and foster homes. These programs act both as initial treatment programs and as transition placements for youth moving from more secure settings. These programs may also focus on specific populations or the provision of specific services, such as treating youth with high mental health needs, or youth transitioning to independent living.
Transition
DYS provides a comprehensive array of services to youth who are transitioning from either State-operated secure placements or community residential placements to their home communities. These services are "backed in” to residential programs to facilitate a successful transition back to the community. Services are provided through a combination of placement staff and non-residential programs contracted through regional offices. Transition services may include: obtaining necessary documentation, family services such as multi-systemic therapy, mentoring, cognitive behavioral groups, substance abuse relapse prevention, supervision, employment training and job placement, independent living preparation and support, direct support, and educational support.
Parole
Colorado Statute requires that every committed youth exiting DYS must serve six months of mandatory parole. Cases that meet certain criteria may be extended by 15 months. Independent of DYS, the Colorado Juvenile Parole Board hears the cases of each youth preparing for parole, sets terms and conditions and has the authority to modify, suspend or revoke parole.
DYS is responsible for the operation of the juvenile parole system. This includes providing parole supervision to each committed youth. Parole supervision is accomplished through the client manager/parole officer system located within regional offices. Parole officers are responsible for ensuring parole plans are designed in accordance with each youth's level of risk and need.
- Vision and mission
Our vision
Achieving youth success and safer Colorado communities.
Our mission
To promote public safety by providing youth-focused, effective care, programming and supervision that cultivates positive youth development, ensures accountability to victims and supports successful reintegration to communities.