The Richmond Youth Academy

The OJJDP FY 10 Earmarks Program furthers 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 Conference Report to accompany the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010 (P.L. 111-117), H.R. Conf. Rep. No. 111-366 at 702-714.

The Richmond Youth Academy is designed to provide structured and supervised activity for youth. Participation in the Richmond Youth Academy is training and preparation for a career in fire-fighting, with attendant classes focused on tutoring, computer literacy, safety training, emergency preparation and life skills. Richmond Youth Academy is coordinated by the Richmond Black Firefighters Association as evidence of their commitment to serve as role models for troubled youth and increase access to their profession for minority students. The ten-month program encourages positive social behavior and making a contribution to the community to improve the quality of life for others. Participants not only graduate from high school but have a career objective to pursue upon completion of the Academy. The Richmond Youth Academy is a prevention program, designed to identify those youth at risk of delinquency and to motivate them in the direction of the Academy to provide focus and guidance for their spare time. By directing these young people in to a routine that emphasizes discipline, and effort, the students become more committed to their education, to acquiring the academic skills required of their grade level and to attaining test scores which will lead to their advancement. NCA/NCF