Transition Program

The Mentoring Center's Transition Program is a 24-week intensive group-mentoring/cognitive behavior therapy program that seeks to change the mentality in youth that gives rise to destructive behavior. The Transition program utilizes an innovative curriculum that instills self-awareness, raises self-esteem, builds character, teaches life skills, improve attitudes and decision making. A team of mentors facilitate the group sessions, which consist of lectures, presentations, discussions, journaling, videos, role-plays, and reading. The goal of the Transition program is to reduce recidivism and increase educational performance of two cohorts of 30 youth, for a total of 60 youth served per year. Graduates of the Transition program inside CYA will receive on-going mentoring, case management, and after care services including: clothing, transportation, educational assistance, employment assistance, and if needed enrollment in drug abuse programs and mental health services. The performance measures of the program will be determined by the following:
' Reduce the recidivism rate of the CYA wards who participate in this project by 40% by maintaining a recidivism rate below 35%.
' Assist 75% of the youth we serve in earning their GED or high school diploma.
' Assist 50% of the youth we serve to enroll in community college or other post-secondary education programs.
' Help 60% of the youth we serve through this project either find a job or enroll in an employment training course.
' Enroll 80 youth and graduate 60 per year in the group mentoring/cognitive behavior change sessions inside CYA.
Provide case management and after-care services to the 60 graduates after their release from confinement.
NCA/NCF