HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/18/2014 05B 2013 Year End Gang Free Initiative ReportBUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
AGENDA STATEMENT
Item No.
For Meeting of: 2/18/2014
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ITEM TITLE:
SUBMITTED BY:
SUMMARY EXPLANATION:
2013 Year End Gang Free Initiative Report.
Dominic Rizzi, Police Chief
This report cover the Gang Free Initiative activities for 2013.
Resolution: Ordinance:
Other (Specify): Report
Contract: Contract Term:
Start Date: End Date:
Item Budgeted: NA Amount:
Funding Source/Fiscal
Impact:
Strategic Priority: Public Safety
Insurance Required? No
Mail to:
Phone:
APPROVED FOR
SUBMITTAL:
RECOMMENDATION:
City Manager
This report is respectfully submitted for Council consideration.
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Upload Date
❑ 2013 Year End Ganq Free Initiative Report 2/10/2014
Type
Cover Memo
Yakima Gang Free Initiative (GFI) Implementation
2013 Annual Report
Project Period: December 4, 2012 — December 31, 2013
Introduction
The Yakima GFI initiated implementation of the action plan in 2013 with the execution of four
partnership agreements on December 4, 2012 terminating on December 31, 2013. The
partnerships agreements secured five of the seven core service components outlined in the
Yakima anti -gang strategy including Outreach (both targeted and general), Screening & Referral,
Academic Support (Tutoring), and Mentoring. The sixth component Behavioral change
interventions in the form of Multisystemic Therapy was secured in July of 2013 along with
additional coordination of the GFI Youth Development Team (YDT).
Additional GFI implementation activities focused on the identification and engagement of
children and youth with varying degrees of risk. These activities are captured under Outreach
with both targeted (efforts directed at one youth identified as "at -risk" and referred for services)
and general methods (efforts reaching groups of high risk youth using gang awareness seminars
to disseminate program information). Furthermore, coordination efforts have focused on
ensuring the multi -agency service model is well equipped to deliver prevention and intervention
services to the high number of special needs youth.
The GFI Advisory Group completed work on a multimedia marketing tools for the initiative
including a website, brochures, and a call center. The Advisory Group continues to serve as the
oversight committee for the Yakima GFI and continues to meets bi-monthly.
The Coordinator and Program Manager provided routine oversight to the service partners
meeting with each on a monthly basis and as needed to address issues and concerns identified by
either the Advisory Group or the Partner agency.
Finally, the implementation phase of the Gang Free Initiative is now referred to as the Gang Free
Project of Yakima (GFP). The addition of this new moniker serves to more accurately represent
the programmatic functions of the Gang Free Initiative.
2013 Performance Measures YTD
Advisory Group Meetings (occurring bi-monthly) 6
AG Membership Retention Rate 12.5
AG Participation Rate 76%
AG Attendance Rate 55%
AG Member Satisfaction No Data
General Outreach (gang awareness seminars) 1
General Outreach 1
Targeted Outreach 74
Completed WARNS 48
Completed Referrals 29
Completed INA's 19
Completed Individual Treatment Plans 12
Completed Behavioral Interventions 4
Completed Family Interventions 0
Parental Notifications No Data
Graffiti Violations No Data
Citations for Weapons Violations No Data
Gang Units 1 (1 pending)
Sustainable resources $140,000
Collaborative Grant Activities 4
Partner Network Activities (homeless youth grant) 1
Partner Investment $479,500
*Incomplete outreach requests and WARNS were removed from the official count.
Project Summary
GFI Partnerships
YPAL — Outreach, Screening & Referral, Life Skills
YMCA — ASPIRE Mentoring
Union Gospel Mission Madison House — Academic Support (Tutoring)
People for People — Gang Free Yakima Connects (211 Call Center)
Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health — Youth Development Team
Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health — Multisystemic Therapy
GFI Coordination Activities
GFI Partner Orientation — February 26, 2013
WARNS Certification Training — March 6, 2013
GFI Development Activities
AmeriCorps Governor's & Mayor's Initiative (Unsuccessful)
Washington State Criminal Street Gang (Unsuccessful)
National Community Based Violence Prevention (Unsuccessful)
Title V Disproportionate Minority Contact (Awarded)
Washington Criminal Street Gang Prevention Program (Awarded)
GFI Program Participants
74 youth outreach request were screened and formally referred via schools, probation and the
community.
• 29 of those requests have been active/referred into the program
• 48 out of the 74 youth have had their initial warns survey completed, however, 48
families have signed consent forms to enroll youth into program.
• 4 youth who have not completed the WARNS are either on runaway status, never at
home/school, and/or families are out of town currently.
• 13 families have refused services
Reasons: already getting services similar to what our service providers do; upset/frustrated that
the school referred them for services; don't want their kids going to these services due to prior
negative experience/history; and uncooperative parents who don't want assistance.
• 15 youth/families - we have been unable to contact
Barrier- One school did not have updated contact information for approximately 22-28 youth
who are sporadic with their attendance and families do not relay that they moved/new phone
numbers. This made a lot of un -needed footwork trying to connect with families if we do not
have the correct information. With these youths, we conducted a total of 10-12 attempted visits
that consisted of phone calls, home visits, and school visits (school visits to see if they have
updated information and/or to meet with child to get contact information however, majority of
these students were absent periodically). Since most of our referrals were school based, these
numbers consisted of youth who have moved out of the district/area; withdrawn for non-
attendance, and also have moved out of home but never updated any information with school
officials, which we confirmed at school.
• 6 youth are waitlisted
Had some contact with either youth or family member who seemed interested in the program—
waiting to get formal parent contact. During this time most families are working agricultural jobs
and do not get home until late in the day and do not have time to meet for appointments.
• Service provider referrals – youth who are eligible to start services
YMCA – 34
YPAL – 37
Madison House – 38
YDT – 19
• 19 referrals were received by the YDT in 2013
Many of these referrals had been logged for several months prior to processing and basic service
delivery plan recommendations were made for 12 of them. Of these 12 cases, eight
recommendations were made for individual counseling, two for mentors, two for educational
tutoring, and four referred to Multisystemic Treatment (MST). Of the seven referrals that were
not processed two were noted as reduction in risk and therefore no YDT services; the others were
not processed because outreach workers were not involved with the YDT before the opportunity
was available. All 19 referrals were involved in YPAL either prior to YDT referral or as a
follow-up to YDT referral. No follow-up information is available.
Highlights
• Schools are excited with the program and we are getting great response from other area
schools that would like to start utilizing this program in the fall.
• Parents who have additional siblings in the household would also like assistance for their
other children and/or for other people they know who may be in need of a program like
thi s.
• 1/3 of the juveniles contacted are interested and willing to try the program and services
that we provide.
• The community and other service providers (i.e., DSHS) are starting to request services
for some youth that they work with.
• During April/May the 24 waitlisted clients were finally were contacted and enrolled into
program within two weeks.
Barriers
• Unmotivated youth and/or parents getting youth to services.
• Parents reluctant to utilize services due to transportation issues regardless that youth live
in the vicinity of the programs
• A few kids got kicked out of a couple of programs and cannot come back until the next
school year which put a deterrent on helping this youth gain some proactive skills.
• Waitlisted youth for mentors—this is one of the biggest barriers we have been dealing
with throughout this year. Youth are willing to participate in one-on-one mentoring but
we do not have available mentors to refer them to. Pro -social interaction/activities with
youth seem successful and I would foresee in the future if youth were paired up with a
mentor they would become more successful in their endeavors since there isn't a positive
stable role model in their life consistently.
• Service providers were not in place in the beginning which was hard for the outreach
workers who were relaying information to parents/youth that services would be available
soon. It took longer than planned.
• Unmotivated youth and/or parents – it is difficult to get youth to services since there is no
incentive and nothing holding them accountable. That made it hard to engage youth in
services we felt would be of benefit to them.
Partner Services
The following is a detailed report of the activities of each partner agency over the past year:
People for People 211 Gang Free Yakima Connections
Objective 1: Develop screening tool and protocols to facilitate a brief assessment of the youth's
current status to determine immediate/intermediate individual and family priorities.
Deliverable(s): GFI Screening Tool.
GC 2-1-1 has completed and successfully submitted the GRIP Outreach Request for 8
individuals since the start of the program. Forms are submitted electronically to GFI Outreach
Workers for follow-up.
Objective 2: Establish call center screening and referral service capacity to field calls during
peak and off peak hours.
Deliverable(s): Gang Free Yakima Connections Call Center.
Call Center hours were extended from 8am-5pm to 8am-6pm. Individuals that call 2-1-1 to
receive GFI assistance are asked 1. If they are a resident in the City of Yakima, 2. If the person
of concern is a youth, and 3. If they are concerned the youth is involved or at -risk of becoming
involved in gangs. If they answer "yes" to the 3 initial questions, a GRIP Outreach Request
form is completed and sent electronically to the GFI Outreach Worker. GC 2-1-1 provides
follow-up, via phone, with each caller approximately one week after the initial referral was
made.
Objective 3: Develop policies and procedures for making referrals.
Deliverable(s): GFI Call Center Policies & Procedures Manual
GC 2-1-1 submitted the Gang Free Yakima Connections Policy & Procedure manual to
Magallan Consulting on April 26, 2013. GFI information and requirements were incorporated
into our existing AIRS accreditation Standards and GC 2-1-1 Policy & Procedure manual. The
Policy & Procedure manual was presented to the GFI Advisory Group on June 6, 2013. 2-1-1
staff has been trained to follow the GFI Connections Policies and Procedures when handling a
GFI call. In addition, staff is trained to listen to concerns of callers that may be initially
contacting 2-1-1 for other non-GFI reasons but, based on information shared during the call,
could be an appropriate referral to GFI. These callers are informed about the program and
asked if they would like to be referred.
Objective 4: Provide screening and referral services to 60 youth at risk of or involved in gangs
annually.
Deliverable(s): Quarterly Activity Report.
Output: 60 callers screened, 60 callers referred to GFI resource or service partner by October
31, 2013.
As of 12/31/13, GC 2-1-1 has received 34 calls related to the GFI project. This is the number of
callers (English and Spanish) who chose the GFI option during the front-end 2-1-1 message. A
total of 8 referrals have been sent to GFI Outreach Workers. An increase in marketing and
media should result in more calls. GC 2-1-1 is actively involved in outreaching to the Yakima
community at a variety of events.
Objective 5: Working with GFI Advisory Group and other Screening & Referral providers to
establish and coordinate crisis response mechanism targeting project clients following episodes
of violence.
Deliverable(s): GFI Crisis Response Protocols.
GC2-1-1 follows AIRS Standards and has an internal protocol for handling crisis calls. In
general, Information & Referral Specialists try to deescalate a caller and, when appropriate,
transfer them to a crisis hotline in their area. GC 2-1-1 will work with the GFI Team to develop
a specific protocol for crisis calls related to GFI callers.
Objective 6: Integrate the Gang Free Yakima Connections resource call center into the existing
211 call center service.
Deliverable(s): Gang Free Yakima Connections 211 Call Center
Current GC2-1-1 staff has been trained in providing service to GFI callers within our current 2-
1-1 call center structure.
Other Activity, Events and Meetings-
• December 28, 2012- Submitted People For People agency information for inclusion in
AmeriCorps Truancy grant application
• January 3, 2013- Extended Call Center office hours from 5pm to 6pm to accommodate
proj ect needs
• January 3, 2013- Attended meeting re: AmeriCorps Truancy grant application
• February 5, 2013- Meeting with Magallan Consultancy to discuss People For People's
specific role in providing service under the GFI contract
• February 7, 2013-Attended GFI Advisory Group meeting
• February 26, 2013- Participated in GFI Youth Development Team Orientation and Training
• April 4, 2013- People For People meeting with Magallan Consulting to discuss program
expectations, goals and outcomes
• April 11, 2013- GFI Advisory Group meeting
• April 16, 2013- Attended Yakima City Council meeting to support GFI
• April 26, 2013- Submitted first draft of Policies & Procedures manual to Magallan
Consulting
• April 30, 2013- Submitted first draft of video showing a 2-1-1 Information & Referral
Specialist responding to a GFI call
• May 2, 2013- GFI training for 2-1-1 staff
• May 13, 2013- Conference call with Magallan Consulting to discuss possible grant
opportunity
• June 6, 2013- GFI Advisory Group meeting
• June 6, 2013- Presentation to GFI Advisory Group
• June 7, 2013- Gang 101 Training @ People For People provided by Sergeant Cortez with
Yakima Police Department
• June 7, 2013- Presented GFI program on Radio KIT during both morning and afternoon
shows
• June 25, 2013- Media interview at Youth Development Center
• June 25, 2013- GFI Open House Event at YPAL Youth Development Center
• July 9, 2013- GFI Partner Meeting at People For People
• July 19, 2013- Safe Yakima Benchmarking Action Team Meeting
• July 25, 2013- Meeting with Magallan Consulting re: PSA Script Development
• July 27, 2013- Show & Shine Under the Shade Outreach Event at YVCC
• August 1, 2013- GFI Advisory Group meeting
• August 5, 2013- National Night Out Event at Southeast Community Center
• August 6, 2013- National Night Out Event at OIC
• August 15 & 16, 2013- Table at Migrant Education Program Conference in Yakima
• August 15, 2013- Yakima Neighborhood Health Services Health Fair
• August 24, 2013- La Casa Hoar Kermes Fiesta Event
• September 5, 2013- GFI Partners Meeting at Magallan Consulting
• September 12, 2013- Ridgeview Elementary Open House Event
• September 13, 2013- GFI Partner Meeting at People For People
• September 14, 2013- Fiesta de Salud Event in Yakima
• September 18, 2013- Garfield Elementary Open House Event
• September 24, 2013- Yakima County Gang Commission Meeting
• September 26, 2013- Presentation on Services to Catholic Family & Child Services in
Yakima
• October 3, 2013- GFI Advisory Group Meeting
• October 15, 2013- Presented services to United Way of Central WA Loaned Executives
• October 24, 2013- Fighting Foreclosure Community Workshop
• October 26, 2013- Veterans Stand Down Event
• October 29, 2013- Yakima School District Parent and Community Forum
• November 4, 2013- Interview with KYVE Television (aired November 18th)
• December 3, 2013- Yakima County Gang Commission Meeting
• December 5, 2013- GFI Advisory Group Meeting
• December 18, 2013- Mid Valley Providers Consortium Meeting
Policy Development-
• Greater Columbia 2-1-1 (GC 2-1-1) is an Alliance of Information and Referral Systems
(AIRS) accredited call center. As part of this accreditation, we must meet 28 program
standards to ensure the quality of our information and referral services. As we received
direction on the intake and referral process, GC 2-1-1 developed a more specific standards
driven policy for the Gang Free Yakima Connections project to ensure the intent of the grant
was met. The Gang Free Yakima Connections Policy and Procedure Manual was submitted
to Magallan Consulting for review. The new Gang Free Yakima Connections call center
protocol was added as an addendum to the current Greater Columbia 2-1-1 Policy &
Procedure manual which incorporates the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems
(AIRS) 28 program standards. It is designed to ensure GC 2-1-1 is providing quality
information and referral services to our callers and our GFI partners, and meeting the goals
and outcomes outlined in the Gang Free Yakima Connections Statement of Work.
• Yakima Gang Free Connections 2-1-1 participated in the Gang Free Initiative Advisory
Group meetings and the GFI Partner meetings and provided program feedback and input that
helped to develop and fine tune the GFI policies. One example of this included streamlining
the partner referral process to ensure that families are responded to in a timely fashion.
Yakima Gang Free Connections requested information on other GFI programs in Yakima
County in order to direct individuals and families living in other communities to the GFI
resources in their local area. To stay up-to-date on the resources being offered in our area,
staff attended the Yakima County Gang Commission meetings. These meetings have
increased our knowledge on the resources being offered throughout the City of Yakima and
Yakima County.
Current Project Personnel -
Current personal working with Gang Free Yakima Connections includes:
1. Madelyn Carlson- CEO
2. Stacy Kellogg- GC 2-1-1 Operations Manager
3. Teresa Sanchez- GC 2-1-1 Operations Supervisor
4. GC 2-1-1 Resource Database Specialist
5. 2- Information & Referral Specialists**
6. People For People Information Technology staff
7. 2- VISTA Volunteers
** 75% of eligible call center staff is certified by Alliance of Information & Referral Systems
(AIRS). Certification is a measurement of documented knowledge in the field of I&R
reflecting specific competencies and related performance criteria
Involvement of Other Agencies or Resources in Accomplishment of the Project-
• During the implementation phase of this project, GC 2-1-1 worked with the other GFI partner
agencies and GFI Advisory Group representatives to understand the role of everyone
involved with GFI and how People For People fit within the GFI structure. It is important to
know the role of each partner and the services they provide to ensure they are sent the
appropriate referrals.
• The value of what GC 2-1-1 can provide to this project includes the numerous agencies,
programs and resources we already have in our Resource Database. When we receive calls
from concerned individuals our goal is to assist them with getting connected to services that
can assist them around gang suppression and intervention issues, but also to serve the caller
as a whole; addressing the multitude of needs they may have.
• We meet with the GFI Advisory Group and GFI Partners on a monthly basis to share
information and address questions and concerns.
• The GFI Advisory Group and partners worked together to plan the Opening Ceremony event
at the Youth Development Center on June 25th
• Several GFI Partners attended the Yakima City Council meeting in April to show our support
for the GFI project.
• People For People hosted Gang 101 training in June that all GFI partners were invited to
attend. This training was presented by Sergeant Cortez of Yakima Police Department.
• Attended the Safe Yakima Benchmarking Action Team and updated the committee on the
GFI activities.
• Attended and participated in numerous outreach activities to educate the community and
fellow service providers about the GFI and available resources.
• Participated in interview with KYVE for show highlighting the Gang Free Initiative Program
and the positive impact it is having on the City of Yakima.
Highlights and Barriers-
Barriers -
Call volume and referrals to the Youth Development Team were lower than anticipated. More
mass marketing in Year 2 should increase the amount of GFI calls to 2-1-1.
A more comprehensive marketing/media push will help to inform the community that 2-1-1 is
available to them if they have questions or concerns about gangs or want to refer someone who is
currently involved in or at -risk of becoming involved in gang activity. 2-1-1 is ready to receive
more calls from the community and increase the number of referrals to GFI Outreach Workers.
Highlights-
• Completing the Gang Free Yakima Connections Policy & Procedure manual.
• Completing the project video that depicts a "mock" GFI call (from greeting to referral) being
handled by a 2-1-1 Information & Referral Specialist
• Presenting the Yakima Gang Free Connections project to the GFI Advisory Group- this
allowed GC 2-1-1 to provide more in-depth information about the services we provide,
answer questions and address any concerns.
• Having the opportunity to present the GFI project as a guest on Radio KIT programs
• Participating in the GFI Grand Opening Event to introduce GFI to the community
• Being interviewed by all major media outlets; KAPP, KIMA, NBC and Yakima Herald
Republic, about the GFI and 2-1-1's role and services
• Completing several outreach referrals that were sent on to GFI team
• Receiving feedback that the referrals sent by 2-1-1 have a high success rate, since individuals
are calling in because they are choosing to call and get help (it is not being forced on them)
• Airing of Public Service Announcements advertising GFI and 2-1-1
• Assisting GFI callers with additional resources that help meet their basic needs and stabilize
their family
• Being interviewed by KYVE television for the "Showcase Central Washington" program
• Giving families and the community hope that there is help for gang involved children/teens
or those at -risk of becoming involved
The GFI Advisory Group and Youth Development Team are comprised of passionate people
who are committed to the project and the projected outcomes. People For People and GC 2-1-1
appreciate the opportunity to give input and provide direction for this project as we move
forward. There is a team atmosphere among the partners and a strong commitment to work
together for the betterment of the community. Through People For People's participation in this
project, GC 2-1-1 will be able to strengthen our Resource Database by working with the GFI
team to identify new resources and referrals for GFI callers. This will also allow us to identify
gaps in services and provide input on possible resources that the GFI team will want to pursue.
Success Story -
1. A mother called 2-1-1 and asked the Information & Referral (I&R) Specialist if there was
a program that would provide "punishment" for her son and two other young teenage
boys because they had been caught smoking marijuana. She and the other two mothers
wanted the boys to "learn a lesson" and ensure this didn't happen again. The I&R
Specialist started asking additional questions about the behavior of the boys and other
possible concerns. She told the mother about GFI and asked if she was interested in
referring her son to this program. The mother was unaware of this program, but was very
interested in having her son referred and getting some assistance and intervention with
his problematic behaviors. The other two mothers also wanted to have their sons referred
and completed the GRIP Outreach Request form with the Specialist. All three boys were
referred to the program and had an outreach worker contact them directly.
2. The coverage that GFI received from KYVE "Showcase Central Washington" was a
great success. The program clearly illustrated the need for and rationale behind support
of this initiative in Yakima. People For People 2-1-1 is a proud partner and is excited to
assist in helping this program grow and develop in Year 2.
Yakima YMCA ASPIRE GFI Mentoring
The Yakima YMCA's program ASPIRE/GFI is different than our traditional ASPIRE mentoring
program. During the first two quarters, our focus has been largely organizational in preparing to
implement this program. We met with school officials to discuss program details, including
providing snacks to participants through the school lunch program. We learned this option is
available. We will meet this week with Dr. Beraza to discuss potential options for opening a
school or both school libraries to coincide with summer mentoring sessions. Follow up meetings
were be held with school personnel to move forward on student referrals and documentation
required for GFI tracking.
YMCA ASPIRE staff has developed applications and mentor expectation forms. Those are being
distributed to potential volunteers and background checks will be run as those are returned.
Orientation and training meeting dates for mentors will be set this week.
YMCA staff has participated in GFI training and orientation for community partners. As
anticipated, the first phase of this project for the YMCA centers on structuring the program,
recruiting volunteers, training mentors and matching them with students.
YMCA staff members working on this project are Tom Oliva and Julia Krolikowski from
ASPIRE, along with Bob Romero. Assistance has come from Pastor Dave Hanson with Sunrise
Outreach who chairs the Safe Yakima Valley Faith and Family Committee. The North Yakima
target area for this project matches the target area that Safe Yakima wishes to address due to the
high volume of crime in that area.
The Yakima YMCA collaborated with Washington State Mentors to host a mentor training
session with a focus on mentoring students from neighborhoods or families impacted by gangs.
Louis Guiden, a former gang member from Louisiana, presented information that he utilizes for
mentoring troubled and incarcerated youth in Western Washington. About twenty people
attended the mentor training, including the mentors participating in the startup of the GFI on-site
mentor training at Garfield Elementary.
The Yakima YMCA launched the on-site mentoring program in the fall of 2013 at Garfield
Elementary School. Mentors are meeting with students every Tuesday afternoon from 3:15-4:30.
Currently, there are six mentors and six students paired with a couple more pending applications.
There are plenty of students who would benefit from the program, but the challenge is recruiting
mentors who will make a two year commitment.
Two of our mentors come from Solarity Credit Union. Solarity has provided some assistance to
Garfield students in the past. The YMCA presented the mentoring opportunity to representatives
of a Solarity employee group. From that came the two mentors.
Mentoring presentations have been made to service clubs, church groups and a couple other
businesses. In addition, the program was shared with an anonymous YMCA donor who has
chosen to provide $15,000 to help pay for a mentor recruiter to work on the program. The
YMCA is currently crafting a job description and preparing to open the part-time position.
Having a designated person to recruit mentors is much needed to expand the program to desired
levels.
The YMCA has met with Barge Lincoln Elementary leadership. An area church has adopted that
school. The YMCA is working to connect the church volunteers with the GFI mentoring
program.
Ellen Jokerst, from the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, is leading the on-site mentoring sessions.
The YMCA funds her position, which is a one year assignment. Ellen has done a very good job.
Her sessions are well-planned. She has balanced group activities with individual time for the
mentors and their students. Everyone is enjoying the sessions.
YPAL Outreach and Life Skills
This was the first year that Yakima PAL provided intervention programs. After a 10 -year history
of providing prevention programming to youth, the cultural shift to one of embracing all youth,
as they come to us, was championed by the board of directors, and led by staff, and encourage by
the GFI.
This was not the only major change at YPAL in 2013. After 10 -years of police staff serving as
staff, the community board elected to support the City with its efforts to create a premiere youth
and family center by hiring a professional civilian for leadership. In March, 2013, the City was
able to confidently move three officers back into field positions and support much needed police
department work in a "boots on the ground" suppression effort. While YPAL will continue to
seek strategic opportunities to place kids with cops to build those much needed relationships, the
school resource officers are doing an amazing job in that area.
YPAL's executive director met with Sara Day, Vice Principal at Washington Middle School to
describe the GFI strategies utilizing GRIP processes. Day showed keen interest for her students,
and invited YPD School Resource Officer, Claudia Padilla to join us. Within 2 weeks the staff at
Washington had met and created an initial list of kids who were in gangs, thinking about being in
gangs, having truancy issues, or behavior issues which concerned them. The initial list included
72 youth names and contact information. The outreach workers then trained the school leaders in
use of the GRIP Request for Service form and process. It would have been a better process to
meet with all Washington staff who work with kids that present with cause for contact by our
outreach worker. We had a number of extra meetings and clarification points during this first
"Beta" demonstration. Additionally, it took several days for the outreach request for services
form to be completed, whereas that process will be streamlined in the future.
Our outreach workers then worked through the request for services information in an attempt to
reach each youth and their family. This proved to be a very difficult process in many cases. The
school did not have a way to ensure that the phone number and/or addresses were correct from
enrollment, due to the mobile manner in which some of these youth are raised. If a youth was
contacted, it often required a second contact to gain support from one or more parents, sometime
requiring a second parent meeting in cases of joint custody, and as long as three weeks to obtain
parent signatures for the next steps. We also provided a well-educated translator who knows
many of the Northeast Yakima as a volunteer to help in those instances where parents needed a
second language available. We now know that we can streamline this process by inviting the
youth and their families to a meeting at the YPAL center. They will come in for a meeting, at
which time permission is granted in writing, families meet outreach workers, and welcomed to
the Center. This facilitates a greater number of meetings per day, and is organized around
schedules rather than outreach workers driving from appointment to appointment. While this
does not work in 100% of the requests, we have found a majority of our families have liked this
approach, and as we move forward we will continue to test this process.
In order to keep the turnaround time as fast as possible for kids to access sources, the outreach
workers are now offering the paper form of WARNS to the youth at the time that initial meeting
is held with parents. Once the parental signature for permission is acquired, youth are offered the
test in a private area at that time. We have found this to work very well, and have eliminated a
second appointment for both families and outreach workers. It also creates and assures a sense of
urgency that requests be met in the most efficient and effective way possible.
During the process of meeting with the families, parents are oft times requesting if there is help
for them to be better parents. The GFI partners are looking at community resources, and YPAL is
considering starting their Parent Club sooner than was scheduled for the organization. This could
facilitate a number of resources coming directly to parents at the center, rather than parents
traveling to multiple sites for services.
LIFE SKILLS CLASSES
YPAL held four positive life skills programs in 2013, each with a schedule of 12 classes held
over a period of three weeks. We have graduated 12 students from the 12 classes. To qualify,
each student must attend all sessions, be on time, and stay until class is dismissed. YPAL also
offered a few make-up sessions if youth were ill or arrangements were made by parents. One
program was offered at Washington School. This did not work as well as the programs at
YPAL, because some of the students were suspended during the time the classes were held and
as a result were allowed on school grounds.
Additional activities included:
• Attended all partnership meetings with the exception of one quarterly GFI Advisory
Meeting.
• Met with Madison House and YMCA to create understanding of how we can work
together.
• Performed WATCH background screening for employees, and/or volunteers who are
involved in youth development activities. The names of the people for this reporting
period are:
Linda Kraft
Manuel Martinez
Alma Rabadan
Gloria Garcia Gonzales
Maria Caro Sanchez
Ed Shoenbach
Jorge Garcia
• There will be a staff change at YPAL for outreach services, as Manuel Martinez has
announced his return to school. We will begin using Alma Rabadan, who has been
working with our outreach program as coordinator for bi-lingual communications in
homes and at YPAL. We will assess whether this is a permanent placement in the
following 30 days.
• We have cobranded with the City of Yakima GFI at all community presentations during
the summer months. We achieved this by including large GFI logo and website
information at booths, table top fairs, and by handing out GFI materials. We have
included YMCA and Madison House brochures.
• Yakima PAL rearranged its physical offices to accommodate partners' presence in the
facility. On a limited basis, the outreach worker for the Yakima County Juvenile Justice
has used space at YPAL.
• Parents are opting to meet with us often at YPAL in our "family room". We have been
surprised at how many seem to prefer coming to the center.
• From June 1 to August 3, we offered three life skills classes several times a week. It has
been a challenge to enroll the high risk youth and then to keep them in attendance for all
13 weeks. We held make up sessions, called parents daily if needed, and texted the
youth.
• Upon graduation, we gifted each graduate with a YPAL membership and enrollment of
their program of choice. We are delighted to have our first graduating class, which
represents 11 youth who were all involved in gangs. An outcome of the program is that
of the 11 youth, 6 have become regular YPAL attendees, signing up for one or more
programs, and now volunteering with chores around the center. We also had a 7th student
join their school's football team, a major milestone, one student who has been meeting
with Madison House for tutoring.
• In coordination with Yakima Juvenile Justice staff, 74 families have now been involved
in our outreach process. We understand 22 youth have moved out of the area, or the
family has changed addresses and cell phone numbers without notification to schools, or
the Center. YPAL outreach will attempt to relocate these families in the fall as we contact
area schools.
• We have worked to identify the best procedures for the outreach coordinators, and have
created several refinements to our processes. We now understand that we need to work
more closely with school counselors, as well as administrators and YPD school resource
officers. We also feel quite strongly that in many instances, two outreach workers should
go together for home visits. We also know that we must have food for these kids when
they come into classes, as many are coming from homes where regular meals are a
problem. We also feel it would be advantageous to have mental health professionals at
the Center to become "familiar faces" to youth and families.
• This summer our efforts focused on working to ensure that all 74 families were reached
out to; and all but 22 were successfully contacted. Not all accepted services, but we will
be tracking the 52 that we have had conversations with.
• In coordination with Juvenile Justice, a spreadsheet has been created that provides
demographic information about each case, including dates of service, etc.
• YPAL will continue to make referrals for tutoring and mentoring to partners.
June 29, 2013 Royal Image Car Show held an annual event for which approximately 2,000
people attended. Two staff from YPAL made on-stage presentations about GFI services.
July 27, 2013 A Show and Shine event was held from 11-4 at Larson Park, at which time
YPAL provided outreach through a booth and on-stage presentations. There were approximate
900 people in attendance.
August 24, 2013 Outreach worker participated as a guest at the Kermes annual event held by La
Casa Hogar in front of the Season's Performance Hall. We provided GFI information, with
attendance estimated to be 1,500 community members.
YPAL conducted general outreach activities to the community by utilizing the following forums:
Washington Middle School Open Houses
Franklin School Open Houses
Davis High — freshman planning for college success in fall
Barge -Lincoln — parent night
GFI Open House at YPAL
Regular meetings with school counselors, administrative staff, and with Yakima School
District's superintendent
Car Club Events in summer
La Casa Hogar Fiesta in fall
Met with school resource officers regularly
Union Gospel Mission's Madison House GFI Tutoring
Over the past year Madison House (MH) has provided tutoring services to 9 GFI students from
referrals. These students arrived with the outreach workers and were given a tour, registration
packets, and were able to meet the staff within the building. Tutoring services ended during the
summer months and resumed in September with the beginning of the new school year. Summer
months will offer academic enrichment opportunities to high risk youth in a camp -like setting.
Madison House has opted to terminate the contract with the City of Yakima; however, remains
committed as a GFI partner agency.
Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health
Comprehensive provided a Youth Development Team (YDT) coordinator. The coordinator
organized and convened the Youth Development Team with participants from Yakima police
athletic league (YPAL) of the gang free project and of Yakima County juvenile court. Included
among these participants were two outreach workers, one each from the juvenile court and
YPAL. The YDT established procedures and principles of operation.
Several barriers began to surface in regards to the functioning of the YDT during this reporting
period; primarily, the loss of the outreach workers had the greatest impact. Without specific
YDT outreach workers follow-up on recommendations made by the YDT and subsequent
coordination with families/youth and service providers to develop individualized service plans is
ineffective. Furthermore, the YDT was planned to have involvement from the Yakima police
department and Yakima schools district, this did not happen during this reporting period.
Attempts were made to improve on this but no coordination was established by the time of this
report preparation.
MST is an evidenced based treatment model that is centered on families in their home
environments. Services are offered through Comprehensive. To date, four referrals have been
made from the YDT to the MST team. Of these, one has accepted and is receiving MST
services. Two referrals were denied by the youth/families because "they are not needed"
according to the families. One referral was denied by MST because the youth did not meet age
requirements specified by the model for participation. Anticipated acceptance of referrals of
MST participation was higher than actual outcomes, likely the discrepancy is due to lack of
engagement with families who were referred because of absence of targeted YDT outreach
workers.
In general, the YDT convened and progressed relatively well until the outreach workers were no
longer involved as they are the team members who carry out the action plans. Also, there are
low numbers of referrals which is likely caused by the lack of coordination between referral
sources and the YDT. In order to address these barriers, the YDT has been reaching out to
community partners in service delivery and working with GFI directors. To have consistency of
YDT performance, targeted outreach workers, increased coordination between referral sources,
and involvement of community partner (i.e. school and police) is needed.
YDT Progress:
• Several YDT meetings where cases processed.
o 6 with reorganized group (after change of outreach workers)
o 1 with full complement of YDT members
• All 19 referrals processed initially
o 6 referred to high intensity treatment (MST) with 2 accepting
o 8 referred to individual counseling with 1 confirmed attending
o 2 referred to mentors at YMCA no confirmed participation
o 2 educational tutoring with no confirmed participation
o 19 participating in YPAL all confirmed some attendance many completed
• YDT procedures developed
Needs:
• Improved commitment from parent agencies of the YDT members (ex. Police
representative team member was told by direct supervisor that she was not given
permission to participate due to a lack of specificity regarding GFI).
• Improved participating from provider agencies in Yakima community (better referral
process, reporting process, etc.)
• Better family connection to improve participation in programs.
• Improved referral procedures from school to improve family participation programs.
• More outreach workers.
GFI Development Activities
The following are descriptions of the development activities undertaken in 2013:
Washington Criminal Street Gangs ($105,000)
The Yakima GFI applied for and received funding from the state of Washington CSG program.
This project was undertaken in partnership with the Yakima County Gang Commission.
AmeriCorps (Unsuccessful)
The City of Yakima was invited to submit an application under the AmeriCorps National
Governor's & Mayor's Initiative grant program. We were specifically selected based on the
work of the GFI and were the only community in the state of Washington invited to participate.
Unfortunately, our application was unsuccessful at the national competition level.
Community Based Violence Prevention (Unsuccessful)
The federal Community Based Violence Prevention project was resubmitted in partnership with
the Yakima County Juvenile Court. The application scored very well but was not awarded
funding.
Title V Disproportionate Minority Contact ($69,063)
The Yakima GFI applied for and received funding from the State of Washington Title V
program. This project was undertaken in partnership with the Yakima County Gang
Commission.
GFI Next Steps
In the second year of implementation the GFI Advisory group should continue to focus on
expanding core services into the North Central and Southeast neighborhoods. Additionally, the
group will be working to identify additional service partnerships to consider with emphasis on
truancy prevention and positive youth development programming.
GFI will be moving toward establishing a more permanent management and coordination
structure from within the city's administrative office. A Operations Manager search currently
underway.
The final phases of the initiative will be considered in year 2 including a comprehensive
evaluation protocol to be accompanied by the formalization of the Yakima anti -gang model to
support replication in other similar communities. The Coordinator is working with the
Washington State Department of Commerce Research Services to develop the evaluation
protocols. This partnership may lead to joint development efforts leading toward federal and
state agency funding for program expansion. Formal evaluation is postponed until the selection
of the Operations Manager in 2014.
The GFI Coordinator initiated contract continuation procedures for existing partners.
Recommendations for continued funding and adjustments were forwarded to City Council and
considered in January, 2014.