Utah state university and granite school district will collaborate to implement a multicomponent violence prevention intervention in two high need school networks within granite school district in utah

This $1,000,000 Cooperative Agreement award from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) under the STOP School Violence Program (CFDA 16.839) will support Utah State University (USU) and Granite School District in Utah to implement a multi-component violence prevention intervention across 29 schools. The project aims to address risk and protective factors related to student violence at the individual, relationship, and school levels. Key elements include universal evidence-based programs, intensive student mentoring, a restorative justice youth court, and a collaborative planning process involving students, families, and community partners. The goal is to reduce the initiation and escalation of violent behaviors among students through this comprehensive, evidence-based approach. The award period is from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2027.

These two networks include a total of 29 schools at all educational levels. Each network will form a violence prevention team that will help to plan and oversee the implementation of the proposed multi-component violence preventive intervention with coaching support from the project leadership team. Consistent with the CDC's framework for violence prevention, they intend to address a range of risk and protective factors at the individual (e.g., attitudes, beliefs, skills), relationship (e.g., peers, family, dating partners), and school (e.g., climate, attachment) domains. In addition, the intervention approach will utilize a continuum of care model that includes universal evidence-based programs for students and families, intensive mentoring for students starting to show signs of problem behavior, and a restorative justice-focused youth court to provide students who have engaged in violent behaviors an opportunity to build their skills, strengthen family connections, and make amends. Central to the implementation of the project are the following guiding principles: 1) actively seek input from diverse voices that represent the community; 2) use of a collaborative planning and program development process that involves students and their families; 3) empower each school to select from a menu, the optional evidence-based curricula and student/family-focused violence-prevention trainings they believe will meet their needs; 4) ensure that the intensive interventions for students are strengths-based and tailored to meet their specific needs; 5) facilitate the connection of students and families to additional support and services as indicated; and 6) work with community partners to reduce participation barriers such as language and transportation. Through this comprehensive approach, utah state intends to reduce initiation rates of violent acts and related problem behaviors and reduce the incidence and escalation of these behaviors in students who have already begun engaging in them.