Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 659 results  for your search.  View and Refine Your Search Terms

  • Reporting for Work Where You Once Reported for Probation

    Since 2012, the New York City Department of Probation’s Arches program has integrated “credible messengers” into its mission, diverting some energies toward helping instead of punishing. The term refers to people, often formerly incarcerated or on probation themselves, who apply their street knowledge to mentoring youth caught up in the criminal justice system. The movement has spread to a variety of government agencies, but usually is used in street-outreach crime prevention work by community organizations. A large body of research shows the effectiveness of the approach in lowered crime and recidivism.

    Read More

  • 'Big Sisters' ride to rescue of Nepali child brides

    Support and counseling from trusted volunteers empowers young women to stay in school and out of child marriage. In Nepal, the Sisters for Sisters program was the result of a governmental effort to reduce child marriages. Volunteers, many of whom were child brides themselves, help fight stigma and cultural pressures by leading discussions with young women on topics like sexual health and life choices.

    Read More

  • The Sandy Hook Nonprofit Fighting Shootings by Fostering More Inclusive Schools

    Start With Hello, an initiative from the NGO Sandy Hook Promise, gives students the opportunity to diversify who they know and interact with in a long-term effort to prevent school violence and shootings. The program, funded by public and private grants, has spread to 11,600 schools across the United States, with each school also getting training on inclusivity. While an impact evaluation hasn't been finished, early studies show that those who participate in the program respond better to mental distress.

    Read More

  • Can basketball reduce gun violence? It did in Richmond, Virginia.

    RVA League For Safer Streets uses a basketball league as "bait" to change young men's lives by teaching critical thinking and better ways to resolve conflicts. The Richmond, Virginia, program was co-founded in prison by a former drug dealer convicted of murder who learned the methods of cognitive behavioral therapy behind bars. Paroled after 23 years, he began counseling youth with an approach that police say contributed to a significant drop in Richmond's gang violence and other crime.

    Read More

  • At This Boston School, Friendships Lift More Students to Graduation Day

    Boston Public Schools is embracing an approach called Building Assets, Reducing Risks that has proven successful in other U.S. school districts. In BARR, teams of teachers compare notes on students to ensure they are on the right track: "BARR doesn't rely on one superstar teacher to notice a kid in trouble. From the science teacher to the school counselor, they all take a seat at the table."

    Read More

  • This Baltimore anti-violence program courts youths most at risk of crime. ‘The alternative is death or jail.'

    In the first year of Baltimore's use of an anti-violence program for young men that has proven successful in Boston, the program successfully reached about half its targeted contacts, and from that group enrolled about 95, or just over 1%, in job training and education programs. Though extremely modest, the numbers indicate the challenges faced by a population in which several died, many got incarcerated, and many others resisted contact. The program, Roca, uses behavioral therapy to turn job training into life training. In Boston, large numbers get jobs and stay out of trouble long term.

    Read More

  • The judge, jury and lawyers are kids. But punishments at N.J. youth court are real.

    The 10-year-old Newark Youth Court has heard some 700 cases in which high school students serve as judge, jury, and lawyers in proceedings that avoid school discipline or criminal charges with creative exercises in personal accountability. Taking aim at fights, disruptive behavior, or more serious offenses involving weapons or drugs. the Youth Court seeks to encourage better life choices. Outcomes may exclude punishment altogether, imposing community service (including Youth Court jury duty) or other alternatives to jail, avoiding criminal records that can ruin someone's future.

    Read More

  • After positive results, Minneapolis looks to expand anti-violence program

    About 40% fewer people were shot in gang-related disputes in Minneapolis during one interval in the first year of the city's Group Violence Intervention initiative. The program uses "call-ins" where people at high risk of shootings meet with law enforcement and other agencies. There they are offered incentives, including needed services, to stop the shootings. It also puts former gang members on the streets, without police involvement, to mediate disputes and counsel young men prone to violence. Based on the initial results, officials planned to expand the program to more parts of the city.

    Read More

  • King County may borrow an idea from Australia to reduce youth homelessness. Readers wanted to know: How much does it cost?

    In Australia, a universal survey in several secondary schools helps to identify students who are at risk of becoming homeless and connects them with wraparound services. The prevention-based model may soon be piloted in King County, Washington.

    Read More

  • Housing initiative for LGBTQ young people strives to create a ‘family bond'

    For LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness and/or with a foster placement history, barriers to education, work, health, and general safety are a common experience. The Quads on Lancaster supportive housing program in Philadelphia offers a small amount of transition housing for LGBTQ youth who have aged out of the system, establishing personal connections and providing services to help participants prepare for adulthood.

    Read More