Current Initiatives:
- Stump the Violence Youth Leadership Initiative
- Youth Engagement & Violence Intervention Initiative (YEVI) (Inactive)
- Hartford Youth Peace builders Initiative: Street Outreach Program
- Teens in Hartford Promoting Sober Youth (TIHPSY)
Stump the Violence Youth Leadership Initiative
In 1999, Lewis Fox Middle School students, administrators and community volunteers created the Stump the Violence Youth Leadership Institute (commonly referred to as Stump). At that time, the youth wanted to send a visible, personal and organized message to the community, that they were tired of being confronted by daily and seemingly acceptable violence.
Since our inception, over 15,000 youth and adults have participated in our events and activities, many of which have been aired on public access channels in Hartford, Bloomfield and Manchester/ South Windsor.
Over the years, students have been trained in the fundamentals of public health, public policy, and community organizing strategies. The Stump program has also expanded its role to provide other vital services and enrichment activities.
Stump addresses the Risk factors of Friends Who Engage in Delinquent Behavior, Low Neighborhood Attachment and Transitions and Mobility. This is done through the implementation of the following Program Components/Services:
- Group and Meeting Facilitation
- Group and Peer-to-Peer Mentoring
- Community Building Activities
- Enrichment Activities and
- Employment & Internship Opportunities
Youth Engagement & Violence Intervention Initiative (YEVI) (Inactive)
In January 2005, Mayor Eddie Perez established the Youth Engagement & Violence Intervention Initiative (YEVI) to address gun violence and other violent crimes among young people. The goal is to develop and implement a number of key strategies focused on intensive youth engagement to intervene and prevent further violence among Hartford’s most at-risk youth.
In partnership with Capital Workforce Partners, Hartford Public Schools-Safe Schools and Healthy Children Initiative and, South End Community Services, YEVI addresses the risk factor of Friends Who Engage In Delinquent Behaviors as well as Low Neighborhood Attachment and Community Disorganization. YEVI will serve youth and young adults who are in need of high-intervention. High interventions based on their risk of being victims and/or perpetrators of violent or other serious crimes: including gang involvement, gun violence or recent return from prison.
YEVI serves youth and young adults between 10 - 24 years of age. Services provided to YEVI participants in need of high-intervention include but are not limited to:
- Conflict Management (amongst gangs)
Hartford Youth Peace builders Initiative: Street Outreach Program
This City of Hartford Office of Youth Services (HOYS) funded initiative is a (2007-08) pilot program focused primarily on youth ages 13 to 18 years of age who exhibit behaviors which could lead them to become violent. The initiative is intended to provide alternative approaches that can be shown to reduce aggressive and violent behavior in this age group.
Generally, the city is divided into three sectors North, Central, and South for the purpose of service coverage. However, the services and interventions for this prototype is focused on four neighborhoods that currently have the highest incidences of youth violent crime in Hartford (Northeast, Upper Albany, Frog Hollow, Barry Square), as reported by the Hartford Police Department crime data.
There were several agencies that applied for this city-wide grant of $450,000, with the following agencies awarded to share in the resources to implement the Peace builders program: Hartford Behavioral Health, Hartford Communities That Care, The Village for Families and Children, COMPASS, and Our Piece of the Pie. These awarded agencies also serve as members of the “Youth Crisis Intervention Collaborative” This team will specifically plan, coordinate, and implement community responses to address incidences of youth violence in the city. As a HOYS partner, the awarded agencies will also work in close contact and connection with the Hartford Public Schools and the Hartford Police Department, and other community and state stakeholders.
A key component of this prototype effort is the provision of intensive supervision and support through the Street Workers/Peace builders. These staff is not “traditional” social workers, case managers or professional counselors. Neither are they community organizers. Instead, they occupy a “hybrid” role and are expected to establish a rapport with the youth, which is part mentor, part navigator of the systems, part life-skills instructor and part liaison with the agency.
Through this effort, the HOYS seeks to achieve the following:
- Reduce the likelihood that a youth participant in the program will be a perpetrator or a victim of violence
- Reduce the level of delinquent behavior among participants
- Increase the participating youth’s ability to navigate the systems essential for their success such as, education, life skills, recreation, career and family
- Increase the participating youth’s empathy for others and attachment to their community
Youth for this initiative can be referred from multiple sources including (but not limited to) the court, juvenile probation, the Hartford school system, HOYS, the Hartford Police Department, Connecticut Department of Children and Families, community-based organizations and parents and caregivers. Participation on the part of the youth should remain voluntary. If the youth is not eligible, the staff person will provide the young person with a referral for the appropriate service in the community.
Teens in Hartford Promoting Sober Youth (TIHPSY):
In early 2006, four Stump youth, Dyllan Leonard, Chad Ricketts, Khiree Smith, and Joseph Wilkerson were selected to serve on the national Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA)-National Youth Leadership Initiative (NYLI). The youth were required to attend a two day NYLI orientation in Washington, DC and then four day training in Henderson, Nevada of this same year. The Mission of the NYLI is “To strengthen the skills and capacity of youth in anti-drug coalitions to influence positive community change”. These trainings enabled Hartford Behavioral Health (HBH) and Hartford Communities That Care (HCTC) to compete and secure a three year ($85,000 per year) grant from the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS). The grant is based on the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF) model to address Underage Drinking.
Shortly after securing the grant, HBH and HCTC partnered with the Community Renewal Team (CRT ) to form a coalition to address Underage Drinking in Hartford. This coalition is now known as the Teens in Hartford Promoting Sober Youth (TIHPSY) and is guided by the youth themselves and supported by the adults in the coalition. In December of 2007, 12th Grader Khiree Smith was appointed as the Director of the TIHPSY Coalition.
The process for implementing the SPF model is as follows:
- Assessment: 1) Analyzing Information About the Problem, Goals and Factors Affecting Them. 2) Establishing Vision and Mission
- Capacity: 3) Defining Organizational Structure and Operating Mechanisms, 4) Assuring Technical Assistance. 5) Developing Leadership. 6) Arranging Resources for Community Mobilization
- Planning: 7) Developing a framework or model of change, 8) Developing and Using Strategic Action Plans
- Implementation: 9) Implementing Effective Interventions, 10) Sustaining the Work
- Evaluation: 11) Making Outcomes Matter, 12) Documenting Progress and Using Feedback
As of December 2007, the TIHPSY Coalition has completed several of these initial steps and continue to progress toward the others. We are currently recruiting for additional youth and committed adults and our coalition meetings are held every 4th Tuesday from 6:00-7:30 (locations vary) for more information, contact 860-209-8957.
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Programs
