The parents of high-school-age inmates on Rikers Island can't call their children to see how they're doing. And sometimes the incarcerated teens won't call their parents. 

"There was a time when my daughter was mad at me," said Melissa, who asked not to use her real name. “And I wish I could have called someone at jail to find out about my daughter." 

Her daughter Victoria was sentenced to almost four months at Rikers, and Melissa was anxious for any information. Then she got a call from one of the counselors at the jail's high school who offered updates.

“She would tell me that Victoria came to class today and she did really well in some of the tests that she took,” she said. “It gave me a chance to find out about my daughter when I didn’t speak to her.”

Millie Pacheco was the counselor. She said she and her colleagues don’t disclose anything confidential to the parents but offer them reassurance and everyday details.

“As counselors, our mission is to help the families feel that their children are OK,” Pacheco said. “I always tell them we’re doing all our best to engage them in school. To work on their high school diploma or take their GED.”

In addition to the phone calls, Pacheco started a support group for families of incarcerated students 16 years ago. At a recent meeting  — held at LaGuardia Community College — about 20 parents, mostly mothers, sat in a circle, joined by a few former Rikers inmates as well.

“Here at the group we don’t judge," Pacheco said. "We don’t really give advice. We listen.”

And that's exactly what parent Melissa said she needed. 

"These kids put you through a lot. They do these horrible things, they're doing crimes, they're on drugs, and you can’t possibly imagine that other people are really going through stuff like this," Melissa said. "And then you come here and you meet up with people and their kids are in the same situation or even worse.”  

Click play to listen in on the support group.