Keeping Youth off the Streets and in School: Leveraging the Big Brothers Big Sisters National Network to Reduce Truancy and Improve Academic Engagement among Underserved Youth

Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (BBBS) will enhance and expand the 'Truancy Prevention Mentoring Initiative.' BBBS is requesting a one-year grant of $10 million in order to reduce truancy and improve academic engagement among the underserved youth in this country. Through this grant Big Brothers Big Sisters of America will be able to: (a) provide direct and targeted investments to agencies serving 45 of the country's highest-need communities, particularly those with high populations of African-Americans, Hispanics or Native Americans; (b) enhance technological infrastructures to ensure detailed measurement and evaluation of the program; and (c) strengthen National Office support of agencies through program enhancement, training, volunteer recruitment, staff and volunteer development, materials and resource acquisition. The target population will be identified by data available in OJJDP's SMART tool. BBBS believes through the combination of these investments they can reduce truancy by at least 15% among the targeted youth's population during the program year and ensure that over 29,000 underserved minorities youth have the best possible chance to achieve in school, in work and in life. CA/NCF