Attorney's Offices Offer Mentorship Program For At-Risk Youth

ATLANTA — This summer, up to 20 youths on juvenile or adult probation will be engaged in a 10-week mentorship program offered by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia and the Fulton County District Attorney's Office.

Through 10 hours of mentor engagement per week, the teenagers, ages 13-17, will participate in support forums, career readiness training, community engagement and an evidence-based, cognitive behavioral life skills session that utilizes the Forward Thinking and Project EGRESS Curriculum designed for at-risk youth, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

The program is called the "Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Credible Messenger Youth Summer Violence Intervention," aka the "Summer Intervention," the press release said. Youth who satisfy its requirements will receive a weekly stipend made possible by a donation from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.

The initiative is being implemented by a team of Southeast Credible Messengers, in connection with the PSN Prevention and Reentry strategy of the U.S. Attorney's Office, according to the press release. Southeast Credible Messengers is comprised of organizers and individuals working to achieve positive youth and young adult mentorship, recidivism reduction, public safety and family and community engagement.

The Atlanta Police Foundation's At-Promise Center recently hosted the program's inaugural event.

“Our partnership with the At-Promise Youth Center is an important part of our effort to provide young people in Fulton County with a better path forward," Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said in a statement. "We are thrilled that the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Atlanta Police Foundation are working with us this summer to prevent violence through intensive engagement with at-risk young people. This program will help the participants live better lives and make our community safer and stronger."

Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said in a statement the project highlights the recognition that prevention and violence interruption must play a central role in making Atlanta safer.

"We know from experience that intensive mentoring, such as that provided by our PSN Credible Messenger partners, decreases recidivism and bolsters community safety," Erskine said.