The Crime and Justice Institute (CJI) has received generous support from the Senator Charles E. Shannon, Jr. Community Safety Initiative (CSI) Grant Program for continued partnership with the City of Fall River, Massachusetts. The CSI program is a dynamic initiative that supports regional, multi-disciplinary approaches to youth violence intervention, prevention, enforcement, prosecution, and reintegration services. Aligned with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention’s (OJJDP) Comprehensive Gang Model, CSI prioritizes the needs of young people ages 10 to 24, residing in a community identified as a hot-spot area and most at risk for gang involvement. Since the inception of the Shannon CSI almost two decades ago, CJI has had the privilege of serving as the Local Action Research Partner (LARP) for Fall River.
As the LARP, CJI provides comprehensive technical and research support to a diverse group of community partners, collaborating with 15 agencies and organizations serving young people throughout Fall River. CJI implements best practices to serve the CSI’s target population, assessing program effectiveness, and utilizing data to monitor and improve outcomes.
CJI engages with community partners to address the unique needs of young people in the Fall River community. CJI’s youth justice team has worked with CSI community partners to strengthen their collaboration as a multi-disciplinary team, examine their individual CSI roles, and increase their use of data-informed and developmentally appropriate practices. Moving forward, CJI remains committed to supporting Fall River and working with CSI partners to maintain a data-driven approach that identifies community needs and leverages existing resources to further improve the quality of services provided to young people and their families.
“CSI’s long-standing partnerships have brought forth sustainable benefits to the Fall River community. The work continues to be commendable and CJI remains thrilled to serve as Fall River’s LARP”, shared Jasmine Jackson, CJI’s Youth Justice Manager, “Our team is dedicated to advancing positive outcomes for the community through collaborative partnerships, increasing access to resources, creating equitable outcomes for young people and their families, and elevating the voices and experiences of young people.”