Peacemaker Youth Education and Apprentice Program

Part of the Indian Country Law Enforcement Initiative, a joint initiative of DOJ and the U.S. Department of the Interior to improve law enforcement and the administration of criminal and juvenile justice in Indian country, OJJDP's Tribal Youth Program (TYP) supports and enhances tribal efforts to prevent and control delinquency and strengthen the juvenile justice system for American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth. This program is authorized by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974, as amended and the Department of Justice Appropriations Act, 2009, Pub. L. 111-8.

The applicant is Federally identified as 'Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah' and has a tribal service population of 192,067. The proposed 'Navajo Peacemaker Youth Education and Apprentice Program' will address the Tribal Youth Program categories of providing prevention services through traditional dispute resolution, violence prevention, community building and traditional teachings to impact risk factors for delinquency, including gang membership and truancy prevention, school drop-out prevention, parenting education, and after school programs; and providing interventions for court-involved youth. The goals of the program are to prevent truancy, reduce offending and re-offending, build community and character, enhance cultural knowledge and understanding, and leadership abilities by providing delinquency prevention services and intervention for at risk and court-involved youth. It will serve ages 11-17 in grades 6 ' 12, which is approximately 7,000 children and approximately 20,000 including their families. It will be located across the Navajo Nation. The project will: 1) establish and utilize a curriculum for traditional teaching that blends Navajo peacemaking and western best practices and therapies for dispute resolution, violence prevention, community building in schools; 2) provide for Navajo Peacemakers to work individually with delinquent and at risk youth and their families through the provision of traditional teaching and counseling; and 3) establish a youth peer apprentice peacemaker program. Strategic and curriculum planning and project evaluation will be accomplished by the Peacemaking Program contracting with the American Humane Association.

CA/NCF