Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission Mentoring Program

Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission (Fresno EOC) currently provides substance use disorder (SUD) prevention and intervention services to youth through two grants – one through the Center at Sierra Health Foundation and the other through the California Department of Health Care Services Community Services Division. Fresno EOC proposes utilizing funding from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Program (OJP), Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to expand its youth SUD services to include one-on-one mentoring strategies. Fresno EOC will model its one-on-one mentoring services for youth affected by opioids and drug addiction after the mentoring program the agency currently operates in the local school district, in which at-risk youth are paired with Fresno EOC mentors to support their needs using the Positive Youth Development (PYD) framework. For the FY 2021 FEOC Mentoring project, Fresno EOC mentors will be paired with youth in Fresno County who are currently abusing or addicted to drugs, at risk for abusing drugs, and with family members who are currently abusing or addicted to drugs. Program deliverables and corresponding primary activities include: Fresno EOC will expand its mentoring services to meet the needs of youth impacted by opioids and drug addiction; onboard 4 mentors to provide one-on-one mentoring services to youth; provide one-on-one mentoring services to 40 mentees annually; expand the capacity and increase implementation of quality standards based on the Elements of Effective Practice; match each mentor with 10 mentees based on goals of the project and characteristics of mentor/mentee for a total of 120 matches during the project period; host monthly group activities for mentors and mentees; and develop services (including educational and support services) for mentees and their families to address opioid or drug addiction issues. The program will ultimately provide 120 youth with support services through leveraged resources or referrals.