Youthbuild louisville proposes deepening the breadth of services IT offers to smoketown youth, specifically students at meyzeek middle school

This Cooperative Agreement, awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), provides $1,000,000 in funding to YouthBuild Louisville, a non-profit organization, to expand evidence-based programming and training services for at-risk youth in the Smoketown neighborhood of Louisville, KY.

The key products and services to be delivered under this 3-year STOP School Violence grant program (CFDA #16.839) include: 1) developing a school safety strategic plan for Meyzeek Middle School, 2) expanding YouthBuild Louisville's current youth services to serve 11-13 year old students at Meyzeek Middle School requiring Tier II and III interventions, 3) training 150 Smoketown residents, including school staff and parents, on topics like trauma-informed care and youth mental health, 4) incorporating student and family voices into the school safety plan, 5) recruiting parents to the Smoketown Anti-Violence Coalition, and 6) enrolling 225 Meyzeek Middle School students in targeted violence prevention programs over the grant period.

Services will be consistent with a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS), as outlined in the trauma-informed, resilience-oriented schools toolkit. Meyzeek middle school was chosen because IT is the only school in the smoketown neighborhood and in the same community as the youthbuild lousiville campus. Targeting the only school in the neighborhood is important because smoketown has consistently been identified as one of the most violence areas in the city of louisville and nationally. The timing for this grant opportunity is also ideal for meyzeek middle school as they are in the process of implementing MTSS and have requested assistance in tier II and III service provision. Objectives include: 1) develop school safety strategic plan by june 30, 2024 and review quarterly thereafter; 2) expand youthbuild louisvilles current evidence-based programming opportunities for at-risk youth to include 11-13 year old students at meyzeek middle school requiring tier II and III services by year 1, quarter 4; 3) train 150 smoketown residents, including meyzeek middle school staff and parents in one of the following topics quarterly, starting in Y1, Q3: DE-escalation, trauma-informed care, positive youth development, family engagement and youth mental health first aid; 4) incorporate the voices of at least 50 meyzeek middle school students and their families in the school safety strategic plan before its completion in year 1, quarter 3; 5) recruit at least two parents or family members of a student at meyzeek middle school to SIT on the smoketown anti-violence coalition (SAVC); and 6) enroll 75 meyzeek middle school students in cure violence (tier III) or teen empowerment (tier II) services annually for a total of 225 over the grant period.