Preventing Delinquency in Girls: An Evaluation of the Young Women Leaders Program

OJJDP's Demonstration Programs Division Grants were established to provide grants, cooperative agreements, and other assistance to organizations. This program is authorized by the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011, Pub. L. 112-110.

Evaluators at the University of Virginia will continue to assess the effectiveness of the Young Women Leaders Program (YWLP), a one-on-one and group-based mentoring program, in preventing delinquency and related outcomes in girls who are at-risk for delinquency based on individual and/or ecological characteristics. YWLP serves 50-85 girls in grades 7-8 annually in the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Through support from OJJDP award #2010-MU-FX-0060, the University of Virginia is evaluating YWLP using an experimental design: eligible girls are randomly assigned to the program or control group in years one and two. Pre-, mid- and post-program surveys from girls, parents, teachers, and mentors will be used to assess changes in girls over the course of the program and one-year after the program. The two groups will be compared statistically for evidence of program effects. The investigators will use observational data and interviews to identify best practices for effective program implementation. Research reports will document YWLP's effectiveness in reducing problem behaviors related to girls' delinquency, the transferability of YWLP to other communities, and the cost-effectiveness of YWLP as a delinquency-prevention program. This supplemental award provides the balance of funds originally requested by the grantee in FY 2010 under the competitive solicitation for Evaluation of Girls' Delinquency Prevention Programs.

CA/NCF