Bolder Options Replication and Expansion

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).

Bolder Options mentoring program will focus on four main elements: (1) healthy lifestyles as a key to personal success in every youth; (2) using an integrated system of delivery that encompasses stakeholders from the entire community; (3) a belief in program quality; and (4) a reliance on evaluation to consistently improve program quality. Bolder Options will initiate a comprehensive intervention program to coordinate family, community, school, and county resources in a united effort to prevent gang involvement, truancy and juvenile delinquency. The Hennepin and Ramsey County court systems, Minneapolis and Saint Paul public schools, and other social service agencies in the Twin Cities refer participants to Bolder Options.

In 2008, Bolder Options served 124 youth and currently youth referrals exceed volunteer mentors 2:1. Bolder Options has the capacity to serve 200 youth annually. The purpose of this initiative is to support the mentor recruitment efforts of the organization through the hiring off an additional volunteer coordinator and strategic marketing campaigns to ultimately serve more youth. NCA/NCF