Mecklenburg County, N.C. – Supported by generous donors and partners, members of Youth Advocate Programs (YAP®), Inc. Baltimore and Charlotte Community-Based Violence Intervention teams met up to exchange best practices on reducing neighborhood violence.
YAP® Alternatives to Violence (ATV) is a partnership with the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. YAP® is one of two nonprofits working with city and county partners to mediate conflicts, prevent escalation and connect high-risk individuals and their families with housing, mental health, education and employment resources. YAP® Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS) program is an initiative of the Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE). YAP® is one of two nonprofits connecting Baltimoreans at the greatest risk of violence engagement to life-changing resources.
“We’re doing incredible work,” said Southeast Executive Vice President LaVeisha Cummings who oversees both YAP® ATV and YAP® GVRS programs. “We are interrupting violence and we are saving lives with both teams in the four locations that we’re serving; two in Baltimore and two at the Charlotte sites.”
Meeting in Charlotte, the violence reduction practitioners shared success stories and discussed their boots on the ground approaches. The nonprofit’s Baltimore GVRS team accompanied its ATV teams to West Charlotte High School, canvassed neighborhoods together. They also visited both Charlotte offices and shared how wraparound support with literacy initiatives, a community closet, mentorship, gaming, and sports and other activities reduce the risk of violence among youth and adults who are at the greatest risk of engagement. Activities hosted by GVRS and ATV teams are used to facilitate increased buy-in from participants.
A national nonprofit in 32 states and Washington, D.C., YAP® partners with juvenile justice, child welfare, and behavioral health entities. In recent years, the organization has also partnered with local public safety systems using its community-based model as part of cities to reduce violence.
YAP® ATV Outreach Worker Tomicia Gray shared how she uses social engagement as an avenue to support young women to help them feel seen and heard. She said many of the program participants have experienced violence or sexual assault.
“What we provide is needed,” Gray said. “We’re stronger in numbers.”
“A lot of times when we go into the schools that’s where the outreach starts, but it’s not where it finishes,” said YAP® ATV Beatties Ford Road Outreach Worker Larry Mims regarding playing video games. It just makes our outreach work a little easier, and it also helps with consistency. A lot of young people and people in general don’t have consistency in their life. So, the more consistent we can be, the more they can see us and earn our trust, it helps. We open that door with gaming.”
YAP® GVRS staff said they also use gaming to connect with youth and adults by hosting tournaments every other Friday. Being intentional about having a presence in school, recreational center and at the team office provides structure, said YAP® Maryland Regional Director Sean Robinson.
“A lot of what is being said is organic, but it’s also organized,” Robinson added. “You have school, you have the rec center and this center (ATV team office) that is structured. The game is the relational aspect. You have to have those foundations in the community, too. Baltimore is set up a little different than Charlotte, although the proximity is similar.”
GVRS Service Partnership Manager Dr. Raymond Greene-Joyner shared that, much like YAP® ATV, GVRS offers monthly engagement activities including retreats, outdoor events, recreational experiences, and other outings intentionally designed to expose participants to new opportunities and positive environments.
“I am very proud of the work YAP-GVRS has accomplished,” Greene-Joyner said. “This is a collaborative effort that involves not only service providers like YAP, but also law enforcement, community-based organizations, and key community stakeholders. It truly takes a unified approach to ensure the success of this initiative.”
YAP® ATV started in 2019 on Beatties Ford Road and expanded to the West Boulevard location in 2021. GVRS began in 2022.
For more information on YAP® and to support these and other programs, visit yapinc.org.