YMCA Building Futures Mentoring Program

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's (OJJDP) National Mentoring Programs initiative is authorized by the statutes appropriating funds for fiscal year 2009. OJJDP made awards to applicants that proposed the enhancement or expansion of initiatives that will assist in the development and maturity of community programs to provide mentoring services to high-risk populations that are underserved due to location, shortage of mentors, special physical or mental challenges of the targeted population, or other analogous situations identified by the community in need of mentoring services.'

The YMCA of the USA seeks to deliver a national Building Futures Mentoring Program in five regions throughout the United States that will move youth ages 9'16 from risk to resiliency. Through training adult volunteers to assume para-professional therapist roles with youth, the organization will match, monitor, and support 12 month long mentor/mentee relationships. In total, the project will provide 850 youth annually with highly trained adult mentors.

The project goals include: (1) increased youth connectedness to community and employment opportunities; (2) improved youth connectedness to families and schools; and (3) increased opportunities for non-familial adults to develop healthy relationship with community youth. Progress will be measured through the collection of relevant data on mentee development achieved in part by engaging youth in a host of meaningful activities including community service events and 'mentee to work days,' as well referrals to adjunct services. CA/NCF