NCJ Number
177950
Journal
Reaching Today's Youth Volume: 3 Issue: 3 Dated: Spring 1999 Pages: 26-29
Date Published
1999
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Six organizations involved in a community-based, multiagency, multimodal juvenile delinquency prevention program in Pennsylvania have successfully overcome common barriers to interagency cooperation.
Abstract
Three primary issues--funding, climate, and communication-- affect successful interagency cooperation. The Intensive Juvenile Delinquency Prevention Program (IJDPP) attempts to deal with these issues by expanding collaborative, community-based delinquency prevention services for youth at risk and by providing services that reduce predelinquent behavior. Risk factors include chronic truancy, incorrigibility, history of familial abuse or neglect, history of drug abuse, predelinquent behavior, and enrollment in a high-risk school. Specific program objectives are to foster an atmosphere of collaboration; to provide cost-efficient, nonresidential intervention; to increase family involvement through parent training; to improve school attendance and participation, positive school reports, and academic performance; to increase involvement in prosocial activities; and to provide nontraditional case management and services to identified students in high-poverty areas. The IJDPP uses specific outcome measures to evaluate success. Data are collected on a continuous basis, and annual summaries are prepared that include benchmarks of success. Evaluation findings indicate that the IJDPP has decreased the number of juvenile detentions and in-school and out-of-school suspensions by 20 percent and has improved parenting skills. The IJDPP has also resulted in an 0.5 point improvement in the average grade point average of participating students. 7 references and 3 figures