News Room - Recent Article http://www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/CHAVOUS/content/hpart_03.

shtml
1 of 4 8/14/2008 5:07 PM
The Chavous Plan for Saving
Our Youth
Our children and youth are in harm's way. Certainly, we are making
progress in some areas, but it is painfully clear that many of our youth
are in trouble. They are making choices every day that affect their
futures, and recently those choices have had tragic consequences. As a
city, we are compelled to take action. I propose a pilot program for
Reaching Youth in Wards 7 & 8 with the help and expertise of the
Children's Youth Investment Trust Corporation.
Critical Need in Ward 7 & 8
The majority of this city's children and youth reside East of the
River.
The greatest pockets of poverty in our city are East of the River.
Violence and crime against young people are on the rise East of
the River
Many youth see no reason to stay in school, but plenty of reasons
to leave.
Teens are "recruiting" elementary students to join their gang and
adopt their lifestyle.
Parents and grandparents are at a loss and don't know where to
turn for answers.
The sense of disillusion is growing and we need to find answers - short
term and long term - to the crisis. Efforts have been made to affect a
change, but traditional avenues of outreach are not adequate. Support
has been piece-meal and lost its power because it has not been holistic
in nature. It is time to take a new approach to reaching and supporting
these young people and their families. We must meet them on their
terms and find what works for them.
A New Way to Reach Youth
I have outlined my vision for this program based on my depth of
experience in the community and the advice of several service
providers that have been "on the streets" for years.
The goal is to reach young people - from elementary school
through high school - in their environment
Give them the support they need to transition safely into
adulthood
News Room - Recent Article http://www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/CHAVOUS/content/hpart_03.shtml
2 of 4 8/14/2008 5:07 PM
The support should be available in several forms:
After school programming
Night-time athletics
Faith-based programming
Mentoring
Counseling
Nutritious meals
Access to health and human services
Ensure that no child or youth falls through the cracks
Provide a continuum of service for the participants
Utilize local high schools as "centers of activity"
Access the network of "Neighborhood Place" created by
the Dept. of Human Services at Anacostia, Woodson and
Ballou High Schools.
Create a Vocational Charter School by September 2004.
Technical assistance should be provided to the community-based
and faith-based organizations
To help them meet the requirements of the pilot program
To increase their sustainability
To create continuity is critical in maintaining the trust of
the participants and the success of the program.
Acknowledging the scope of the vision, it is critical to develop realistic
goals and desired outcomes for this program at the outset. With a
budget of $1,000,000 for a twelve-month pilot program, it is important
to manage expectations. My goal is to provide the structure and support
that will bring quality service to as many children and youth as
possible.
Proposed Program & Partners
I propose short-term and immediate action in addition to laying the
groundwork for a long-term, substantive program that will change the
way the District approaches some of the most "hard to reach"
populations. This program will be developed in collaboration with
numerous partners - CBOs, CYITC, the faith-based community, YSA
and the Juvenile Justice courts, the Roving Leaders of Parks and
Recreation, Neighborhood Places coordinators and technical assistance
providers and most importantly, young people. We need to:
Identify service providers with expertise in youth outreach
This should be done through invitation and the RFP
process, as is appropriate with public dollars.
The Trust Corporation should look to community-based
and faith-based organizations with strong connections to
the neighborhoods and solid track records of outreach and
youth programming.
Organizations should propose services based on the
program parameters and goals as defined in the RFP.
Methods of outreach should be well planned, targeting the
various age groups as defined by the RFP.
Programming should provide appropriate activities and
support that address the needs of children and youth.
Organizations should have the infrastructure to allow for
grant reporting and monitoring.
In some cases, collaborative proposals may provide the
News Room - Recent Article http://www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/CHAVOUS/content/hpart_03.shtml
3 of 4 8/14/2008 5:07 PM
best combination of outreach, programming and fiduciary
responsibility.
Proposals will be solicited for programs at six sites; three in
Ward 7 and three in Ward 8.
One-year grants of $150,000 will be made to support
wrap-around services for 50 youth at each site.
An average cost of $3,000 per youth is appropriate and necessary
to achieve the desired level of service for the target population.
The key component of the programming will be Youth
Development - engaging youth in the decisions that affect their
lives.
This includes hiring and training youth - especially youth
that have dropped out of school - to survey talk to their
peers about programming. Youth will be charged with
reporting on the kind of programming in which young
people want to participate.
This exercise demonstrates the philosophy of the desired
programming - youth development and preparation rather
than prevention and deterrence.
In the initial months of the pilot program, programming
will be provided as proposed. Age gender appropriate
activities (that assure participation or viable options for all
youth) will begin by June 2004.
Organizations will develop programs based on the youth
feed back in a timely fashion. Feedback can be received
both informally and at designated points in the program,
again highlighting the philosophy of youth development
and empowering the youth to see results of their efforts.
The Trust will support the organizations with a variety of
technical assistance:
Organizations should participate in the "DC BEST"
training - Advancing Youth Development - to give them
additional tools to use in their work with young people.
The Trust should engage the National Crime Prevention
Council's fasten program that provides research
information for the faith-based organizations providing
social services to at-risk youth.
Organizational technical assistance will enhance the
operations and scalability of the funded organizations.
Funded organizations should join a network of community
and faith-based providers serving at-risk youth, providing
them with "best practices to improve their programs.
IMPLEMENTATION AND TIMELINES
This pilot program demands intense support and flexibility, with
on-going monitoring and evaluation that will result in a program that
can be brought to scale and replicated throughout the city.
The Trust should hold monthly meetings with service providers,
Roving Leaders, youth, parents and city leaders to discuss the
program's success. These discussions will inform the
development of the program in successive years.
Design will include new programming for young people
that include youth development principles, "lessons
News Room - Recent Article http://www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/CHAVOUS/content/hpart_03.shtml
4 of 4 8/14/2008 5:07 PM
learned" and input from youth accessing and utilizing the
programs.
The city requires a high level of accountability for this project.
To that end, program costs should include Trust Corporation
staff, admin/accounting support, technical assistance and
program evaluation along with our UDC partner.
REVENUES $ 1,000,000
EXPENSES
Grants and Program Costs $ 900,000
Personnel and Contract Employees 74,864
Communications 6,500
Other Admin. 9,525
Indirect Costs 9,110
TOTAL EXPENSES $ 999,999

Home | Who Is Kevin P. Chavous | Ward 7 History | Staff | Photo Gallery
Education Vision | In The Community | Legislation | News Room | Townhall Meeting Info | Kids Corner
Kevin P. Chavous 2002
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Suite 402 | Phone: (202) 724-8068 | Fax (202) 724-8097