Across the nation, communities are striving to reduce the revolving door syndrome of youth caught in the juvenile justice system. Research shows that seven out of ten youth are re-arrested within one year of being released from juvenile hall or other out-of-home placements. Youth with five or more arrests have a greater than 90% likelihood of being re-arrested. Addressing the tendency of youth offenders to return to criminal behavior — recidivism — is a tremendous challenge.

Through its Youth Offender Strategy, Pathways to Change (PTC), Safe Passages has helped significantly reduce the youth recidivism rate in Oakland. By offering a myriad of services through The Mentoring Center, including individualized case management, drug and alcohol treatment, job training and placement, family support services, after-school activities, anger management, and counseling to repeat juvenile offenders, PTC has positively impacted the ability of youth to stay in school and out of trouble.

A 2005 study comparing 160 PTC graduates to other similar repeat youth offenders found the comparison group was twice as likely to re-offend than the Pathways youth. The study also tracked 13 PTC youth across three school years, and found that the absence rate of the youth dropped by 26%, and the suspension rate dropped by 71%.

The drop in recidivism experienced by PTC youth was faster and larger than in many similar specialized programs in California and throughout the U.S. The reduction in the number of youth re-offending not only makes communities and schools more stable and secure, but saves the state hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. The California Center of Juvenile and Criminal Justice estimates that the incarceration of a youth costs $48,000 per year. By keeping youth from re-offending, PTC is allowing the state to save money that can instead be put toward positive school and communities. A cost benefit analysis conducted by the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice found that their state’s recidivism decrease from 46% to 42% over two years had saved an estimated $65 million in long-term savings.

The Juvenile Bench, Probation Department, and County Social Services have all lauded the PTC as a highly effective alternative to incarceration. Program enrollment has more than doubled between 2003 and 2005. The court acceptance rate of youth to the program is at 80%, up from 60% one year ago.

According to client surveys, PTC youth and their parents have a more positive outlook on their lives and futures after completing the program. Youth express new goals for themselves, such as, “graduate from high school and go to a university” and “play football and go to the Pros.” Some PTC youth report that they now see school as a necessity for the future.

A parent of a PTC youth eloquently states, “My child has emerged from the program with more self-worth and an improved ability to speak his mind and express himself clearly.” Other parents also state that relationships with all members of the family tend to improve, and youth become less defiant and more cooperative.

In the Fall of 2004, Safe Passages and the Alameda County Child Care Planning Council brought together public- and community-based agencies throughout Alameda County to develop and submit one single collaborative grant application for the federal Early Learning Opportunities Act (ELOA) Discretionary Act grant program, from the Child Care Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The collaborative was awarded a grant in the amount of $997,917 for 17 months to promote reading, language skills, and positive social interactions among preschoolers.

With this grant and under the Early Childhood Initiative,7 preschool centers in Alameda County, including 2 Oakland Head Start sites, and 3 OUSD Early Childhood Education Center sites, and 2 faith-based centers in East Alameda County received the following services: Early childhood consultation, Second Step Violence Prevention Curriculum, Teacher and Parent Early Literacy Training. These services were delivered by community service providers, namely: Family Paths, Jewish Family Community Services, The Link to Children, Through the Looking Glass, Marcus A. Foster, and Oakland Ready to Learn.

In addition, there were significant shifts in parenting skills for parents who attended workshops:

“These are very exciting outcomes,” states Angie Garling, Child Care Coordinator for Alameda County Child Care Planning Council, “we are seeing locally what quality and coordinated programming can do in turning around the lives of very at risk young children and their families. We believe that these evaluation results will help leverage greater public and private investment for much needed intervention programs in high need areas of Alameda County.”

The collaborative brought together under this federally administered opportunity has begun to demonstrate exciting results for early intervention programs. Although ELOA dollars have ended, the collaborative partners will actually continue to expand and institutionalize the work begun through other federal and local resources. The value of evaluation and research is undeniable as Oakland continues to develop evidence based support for early intervention programs.

Almost two years ago, Safe Passages wrote about an exciting ballot measure initiative that was to increase funding for violence prevention programs. In this article, we report on follow up since passage of Measure Y and on accomplishments to date. Measure Y, the Violence Prevention and Public Safety Act (VPPSA) of 2004 allocates new parcel tax and parking surcharge from commercial lots, support fire safety, policy services, and targeted violence prevention programs. The goal of the Violence Prevention and Public Safety Act is to increase public safety and to dramatically reduce violence among young people. This year, approximately $6 million of the $19 Millions generated by Measure Y revenues, are targeted for programs for young people. These efforts are being jointly administered by the City of Oakland’s Department of Human Services and the Community and Economic Development Agency.

“There was a strong sense in the Oakland community that we needed to work on both fronts of crime: prevention and suppression. Recognizing that there are now many proven best practice models for intervening early in young people’s lives, the City decided to direct resources on proven programs,” explains Andrea Youngdahl, Director of the Human Services Department for the City of Oakland.

VPPSA is a comprehensive and multifaceted effort to address the complex and multiple risk factors associated with violence including, poverty, unemployment, discrimination, substance abuse, educational failure, fragmented families and domestic abuse. Efforts build on positive assets and resilience in individuals, families and communities. City Council approved a continuum of 18 specific, best practice-based program strategies for reducing violence among the VPPSA target population:

Youth Outreach and Comprehensive Services: Street Outreach, based on a best practice from Boston, is strategy supporting school and/or community based outreach workers who provide mentoring, case management and support services for truants, school drop-outs, and other disengaged youth. Another high risk population is epidemic number of sexually exploited minors in Oakland. The goal of Outreach to Sexually Exploited Youth is to reach this population and connect them to the programs and support they need to succeed. The goal of Sports and Recreational Programs is to intervene with high risk youth 18 and under to develop pro-social behaviors via recreational programs that provide a high intensity of mentorship. The City-County Neighborhood Initiative, a

program based on best practices, has community builders going door-to-door to support and encourage neighbors to address their issues (e.g., typically truant youth, blight, and drug dealing) and help them to organize their communities.

Special Services to Children and Youth Exposed to Violence and/or Sexually Exploited: Family Violence Intervention intervenes to reduce the negative effects of exposure to domestic violence among children and youth, and their families, by providing them with Family Advocates and Child Caseworker(s). Mental Health Services are critical for young children (0-5) who witness violence in their homes, neighborhoods, and schools. Youth Support Groups based on a mental health model are the most effective support for older youth exposed to violence.

Diversion and Reentry Services: : The Project Choice Model provides intensive support both pre- and post-release for youth and young adults paroling to Oakland in order to reduce recidivism. Pathways to Change is a diversion program for repeat juvenile offenders on probation. Both programs are highly comprehensive, with low caseloads for case workers, frequent contact, family contact and support, and careful coordination of community services. Restorative Justice Training teaches staff who work with young people on probation and parole how to engage communities in dialogue with perpetrators of violence and find ways for each to heal.

Employment and Training for parolees, probationers, and high risk youth: : For parolees, Intensive Reentry Training and Employment, including subsidized on-the-job training, helps to reduce the allure of the underground economy while skills are developed. Crew-Based Employment offers parolees subsidized work activity as part of an eight-person crew, such as Public Works, Fire Services, or Community Service. After-School Job Training helps high-risk youth acquire skills and contributes financially as well. The Transitional Jobs strategy prioritizes direct placement of clients into employment via contracts that pay per client per job placement and retention benchmark. Subsidized Summer Youth Employment provides job placements for high risk youth in Oakland’s Mayor’s Summer Jobs Program.

School Based Services: The Safe Passages Middle School Model provides school-based assessment, case management and referrals to needed services, including mental health, for high-risk students at Oakland public middle schools. Second Step Violence Prevention Curriculum is a nationally renowned social-emotional learning program that has been shown to reduce suspensions and violence in Oakland schools. A Peer Conflict Resolution Program for middle schools with high rates of truancy is a best practice shown to reduce playground and classroom conflicts, office referrals, and suspensions by preventing the escalation of conflicts that could otherwise lead to disruption of learning.

Many Measure Y programs just went into effect on July 1st, including Street Outreach programs in West, Central and East Oakland; programs to reengage and support people on parole and probation who want to change their lives; advocacy and mental health services for families and children exposed to violence; and the rest of the 18 Measure Y strategies. There are currently 33 agencies in contract with the City of Oakland to provide this wide variety of services. While the resources provided through Measure Y are significant, they are just beginning to fill the wide gap of service needs in Oakland. Poverty rates, housing costs, high unemployment continue to force many into underground economies and life of crime. While Measure Y is a great start to turning lives around in Oakland but it cannot cure all social problems at once.

Safe Passages is an Oakland-based organization dedicated to helping urban children and youth, focusing on violence prevention and intervention. Safe Passages works to reduce the effects of exposure to violence, and to ensure that children and youth have equal access to healthcare, education, and caring adults. Safe Passages has developed quality after-school programs for children and youth of all ages, specializing in providing programs for at-risk middle and high school students, including jobs and training for at-risk teens and young adults. Safe Passages is an unprecedented partnership among over 65 public and private agencies including the County of Alameda, the City of Oakland, school districts, the East Bay Community Foundation and community based organizations.

Safe Passages wishes to acknowledge the daily contributions of our Board Members and Partners: