At risk youth mentoring program

Neighborhood First Program, Inc., 'At Risk Youth Mentoring Program' seeks to prevent and reduce delinquent behaviors in at-risk youth residing in the targeted areas of Bucks County with high occurrences of juvenile offenses, truancy, gang and other related negative behaviors. The Outreach program will identify, engage and motivate these youth to utilize prevention and intervention strategies. Additionally, and as a result of ongoing collaborative relationships with other youth serving agencies, a needs assessment identified a gap in services to youth identified as transitional ' those youth between 14 and 18 who are dependent upon and will be aging out of juvenile systems and who lack the skills necessary to achieve self-sufficiency. As a result, the Neighborhood First Program will add a transitional youth support track to its existing lifeskills/outreach/mentoring program which will continue to serve youth 12 to 18. The Lifeskills/Competency track seeks to expand knowledge in those areas (vocational, educational, career, community service) which will help them succeed in their community. The program will serve 75 youth within a one-year period. Primary service activities will consist of weekly outreach contacts with parents, schools, probation and other community referral systems. Lifeskills/Competency classes will be held twice weekly with transportation provided. Successful completion is defined as completion of a three-month cycle. Participant progress will be measured by the number of participants, their completion rate, truancy rate, and number of contacts with juvenile authorities. Competencies are measured through pre and post testing.

NCA/NCF