At-Risk and Delinquent Girls Programs in the SafeFutures Demonstration: Programs Models, Implementation Challenges, and Recommendations for Research, Policy, and Practice

• NCJ Number: 224812
• Author(s): Caterina Gouvis Roman; Rebecca Naser; Shelli B. Rossman; Jennifer L. Castro; Jennifer M. Lynn-Whaley
• Date Published: November 2006
• Length: 144 pages
• Grant Number(s): 95-JN-FX-K012
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
• Corporate Author: The Urban Institute
• Sale Source: The Urban Institute
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Downloaded November 19, 2008

Annotation

This report presents information obtained from multiple visits to six communities after their participation in 5 years of the SafeFutures Initiative sponsored by the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), with the aim of reducing juvenile delinquency and youth violence; this report focuses on at-risk and delinquent girls (ARDG).

Abstract

Although the ARDG programs varied widely by target population, program focus, and services provided, the issues that arose in serving girls and young women were similar. Staff across a variety of programs expressed frustration at the lack of a national program model for at-risk and delinquent girls. The staff of some programs indicated that options for training were limited regarding girls’ needs and how to address them. Although the SafeFutures technical assistance coordinator provided sites the option to receive onsite training in best practices for at-risk girls programming, staff reported that more in-depth training is needed. Staff also reported that there were few, if any, gender-relevant programs at the national or local levels that targeted girls for internships or jobs or encouragement of entrepreneurship. A number of programs quickly reached capacity early in the program year, which required that girls be put on waiting lists. The majority of the programs discussed in this report served approximately 30 clients or fewer each year. Other issues identified in the evaluation were the serious needs of young girls; a funding focus on intervention at the expense of prevention programs such as mentoring and group recreation activities; and difficulty in obtaining parent/caregiver support for their girls‘ involvement in programs. Based on these findings, policy, practice, and research recommendations are offered. The cross-site evaluation documented the process of community mobilization, planning, and collaboration needed to implement the SafeFutures components. 44 exhibits and 83 references