The Iowa Big Brothers Big Sisters Coalition

The OJJDP FY 09 Earmarks Programs further the Department's mission by providing grants, cooperative agreements, and other assistance authorized by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974, as amended, to organizations identified in the Explanatory Statement Regarding H.R. 1105 (Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009), 155 Cong. Rec. H1653 (daily ed. Feb. 23, 2009) (statement by Rep. Obey, Chairman of the Committee on Appropriations of the House).

The Iowa Big Brothers Big Sisters (IBBBS) Coalition will use the OJJDP FY 09 Earmarks Program funding for the sustainability and growth of mentoring relationships between children and their mentors in 17 counties of the State of Iowa. This coalition expects to serve more than 3,000 children, between the ages of 6 ' 18 through one-to-one mentoring relationships. The goal is to reduce negative outcomes that contribute to juvenile delinquency, such as low self-confidence, poor academic performance, truancy, and negative social behaviors. All volunteers and children will be assessed for strengths, needs, appropriateness and safety and be provided with personal safety and sexual abuse training. IBBBS will achieve the following outcomes in children's lives: reducing drug and alcohol use, improving school performance and attendance, improving relationships and self-esteem and reducing violence. Further, IBBBS' programs use a program-based outcome evaluation system which measures the program's ongoing effectiveness based on twenty-one factors; gaining input from the parent, teacher, mentor, case manager and the child served. NCA/NCF