New youth gun violence reduction initiative aims to help teens and parents in Indianapolis
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NICJR has supported multiple communities in establishing initiatives to identify and intervene with high-risk youth, connecting them to supports that reduce their likelihood of future violence involvement. The following highlights several of our youth violence intervention efforts.
Oakland Youth Violence Reduction Initiative
In partnership with the Rites of Passage program in Oakland, the Alameda County Probation Department, the Alameda County Department of Education, and the Oakland Department of Violence Prevention, NICJR developed the Oakland Youth Violence Reduction Initiative (YVRI), which identifies and intensively engages the small number of youth who are involved or who are at very high risk of being involved in gun violence.
NICJR helped create the Oakland Youth Violence Reduction Coordination (YVRC), a team of community and youth justice leaders who meet weekly to review recent incidents and upcoming releases from juvenile facilities to determine which youth need coordinated and intensive interventions. YVRC is designed to break down silos among agencies that serve many of the same youth and fund or contract with many of the same youth-serving community-based organizations.
After months of planning, NICJR, the Alameda County Office of Education, and the Alameda County Probation executed an agreement passed by the Alameda County Board of Supervisors that enables increased data sharing and coordination—with the ultimate goal of identifying and providing efficient, comprehensive support to Oakland's most vulnerable youth.
NICJR has launched a parallel effort, the Indianapolis Youth Violence Reduction Initiative, in partnership with the City of Indianapolis and VOICES (a local community-based organization). This innovative initiative is expanding the City’s Gun Violence Reduction Strategy by identifying and intensively engaging the small number of youth who are involved or at very high risk of being involved in gun violence. We are also in the early stages of developing a similar YVRI effort in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
Youth Violence Intervention Iniative
NICJR’s youth violence intervention work is informed by research carried out through the Youth Data and Intervention Initiative (YDII). Through this in-depth research and data analysis project, NICJR sought to learn what specific risk factors within specific local jurisdictions lead children to have a greater likelihood of being involved in gun violence when they grow up. With a clear understanding of risk factors, school districts or other systems can utilize data to refer youth and their families to intensive, community-based interventions.
Thrive Academy
The Thrive Academy is a data-informed youth development and violence intervention program that provides intensive community-based services to youth under Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) supervision who are at very high risk of being involved in gun violence.
Thrive Academy Outcomes
As of September 2024, the Thrive Academy had served 131 youth. Of those, four out of five youth had not had a gun-related rearrest at the time of reporting, and only 2% had been victims of nonfatal shootings.
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History
- In 2023, the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) began working closely with NICJR and the Annie E. Casey Foundation to develop and implement a statewide gun violence reduction strategy for system-involved youth in Maryland.
- NICJR first conducted a comprehensive assessment of all youth known to DJS who were involved or suspected of being involved in a shooting in recent years, with the goal of identifying variables that may collectively indicate that a young person is at a very high risk of gun violence involvement.
- DJS and NICJR used assessment findings to design the Thrive Academy, which launched in September 2023.
- NICJR continues to provide training and TA for community-based organizations providing services to Thrive youth.
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Where does Thrive operate?
- The Thrive Academy operates in Baltimore City and County, Anne Arundel County, and Prince George’s County.
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How does Thrive work?
- After identifying a young person, DJS staff refer the youth to the organization leading intervention services in the jurisdiction where they live. The local organization provides intensive life coaching to the youth and support for their family, and DJS and the community-based organizations meet weekly to coordinate efforts and assess the progress of each youth.
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Who funds NICJR’s work on the Thrive Academy?
- The Abell Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Pull Up Fund have supported NICJR’s work on the Thrive Academy.
San Francisco School Critical Incident Intervention Initiative
In San Francisco, NICJR has partnered with the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and Their Families (DCYF) and the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) to develop and implement the School Crisis Support Initiative (SCSI). SCSI coordinates a range of education, justice, health system, and community partners to identify youth who have been or are likely to become involved in major incidents on school campuses and engage them and their families in effective interventions via School Violence Interrupters and Life Coaches on school campuses. By focusing resources and interventions on this relatively small but critical population, San Francisco aims to maximize its impact on reducing overall youth violence.
