Evidence Based Practices
The Advance Peace strategy provides Fellows with basic supports in the form of stipends, to enable participants to address basic needs such as food, clothing, transportation, and childcare. These supports play an important role in preventing further involvement in crime. A primary characteristic of the target population is a lack of connection to resources and positive adult role models. Without the chance to envision another way of living or access to the resources that would allow for choice of an alternative way of life, the possibility of change is extremely low. The elements of the Advance Peace strategy are designed to work together to help Fellows build connections to caring adults, obtain services they need to address needs such as past trauma, educational failure, or lack of housing, and build a pathway to a healthier life that is free of violence.
The Advance Peace strategy for violence reduction also includes the following primary service components:
Street Outreach
The program will employ staff identified as Neighborhood Change Agents (NCAs) to seek out and connect with those most likely to be perpetrators or victims of gun violence. NCAs will seek to make daily contacts with participants and be available to them on a 24 hour per day basis with the goal of establishing trust and building relationships. Daily contact may include in person engagement, phone, or text message for the purpose of providing guidance, mentoring, and checking on safety. Outreach by NCAs also includes communication with family and community members, to build support, identify resources available to participants, and to gain information on conflicts between neighborhood groups and gangs that may impact the young person at risk.
Mentoring
In addition to the daily mentoring provided by NCAs, Fellows will have access to an Elders Circle made up of male volunteers 40 years of age or older who provide intergenerational mentoring for boys and men of color. The Elders Circle will meet for two hours monthly and as relationships of trust develop, will provide guidance on topics such as family dynamics, dealing with conflict, and the impact of violence. Elders will also provide individual assistance to participants in areas such as job search and personal finance.
Intensive Case Management
NCAs will meet regularly with each participant enrolled as a program Fellow to provide them with intensive case management. Each NCA (Neighborhood Change Agents) will carry a caseload of approximately 5 Fellows, to ensure sufficient time to develop trusting relationships. Participants will be assigned to an NCA based upon their neighborhood of origin, and a key component of this work is the collaborative development of a Life Management Action Plan (LifeMAP) that identifies short- and long- term goals and the steps to achieving each one. Short term goals may include such things as addressing trauma or violent behavior by taking part in counseling or anger management. Long term goals might include rebuilding family relationships or obtaining a high school diploma. The LifeMAP process includes setting timelines for the achievement of goals, so that progress can be monitored and assessed. Participants who demonstrate consistent participation and commitment to working towards the milestones in their LifeMAP over a period of five months will become eligible for a monthly stipend. The purpose of the stipend is both to provide an incentive for building a healthy life and to show participants that they are valued. Based upon the needs identified in the LifeMAP, NCAs will work with public and community-based referral partners to help participants access culturally competent services. These include individual and group mental health services, anger management, GED preparation. To support engagement with services for participants who have often been profoundly disconnected from the larger community, NCAs will accompany the Fellow to the program or service during the first few sessions. This will enable them to support enrollment of the Fellow in the program and to determine if the service is a good fit.
Life Skills Training
NCAs will provide Life Skills Training to participants to enable them to shift their thinking and behavior so that they can more constructively engage with conflict and become a positive influence in their communities.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Advance Peace Consultants will provide Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to participants to enable them to shift their thinking and behavior so that they can more constructively engage with conflict and become a positive influence in their communities.
Subsidized Employment
A subset of the Fellows will have the opportunity to participate in employment opportunities to develop job skills after a minimum of 12 months in the program. Program staff will work with participants to identify their career interests and connect them with placements at partner organizations in the community or local government. Many of the employment-training opportunities will be 20 hours per week for a period of at least three months. Fellows will receive a stipend for their employment paid through private funding sources to limit the financial burden on the host organization.
Seven Daily Touch-Points
The program’s “7 Daily Touch Points” will provide developmental and healing resources, and uplift community voice. This intervention will reduce cyclical and retaliation violence, reduce firearm related deaths, and reduce violence rates and the cost of firearm homicides.
The centerpiece of Advance Peace is a high-touch and personalized 18-month Peacemaker Fellowship®. The Peacemaker Fellowship® is grounded in evidence-based practice and includes seven intensive daily touchpoints between program staff, volunteers, and Participating Fellows.
The seven daily touchpoints of the Fellowship include:
LifeMAP Goals
Completed by an NCA and the incoming Fellow during intake, the LifeMAP (or management action plan) provides an individual comprehensive assessment of a Fellow’s circumstances in key areas, including housing, education, employment, transportation, finances, safety, family/relation- ships, physical health, mental health, and spiritual, recreational, and social connections. For each of these areas, the LifeMAP outlines the Fellow’s short-term and long-term goals and specific steps for achieving them. For example, short-term goals may include participating in substance abuse treatment or individual counseling, attending parenting classes, or paying outstanding vehicle violations. Long-term goals may focus on rebuilding family relationships or completing a GED program. Each goal has a timeline associated with it, allowing for close monitoring and evaluation. The LifeMAP is updated every six months, considering the Fellow’s accomplishments as well as areas of challenge.
Daily Checkins
NCAs check in with each individual Fellow daily, multiple times a day. In addition, daily interaction between staff members and Fellows provides Fellows with support, guidance, encouragement, and mentorship that are often absent in other parts of their lives.
Fellowship survey results indicate that the relation- ship building with AP staff members is one of the most valuable elements for ensuring continued participation and growth in the Fellowship.
Social Services Navigation
Based on documented needs in one’s LifeMAP, Fellows will be referred to available and responsive community services, such as GED preparation or handling anger appropriately. Notably, a NCA does not simply give a Fellow the contact information for a service provider and instruct him to report to that provider organization. Instead, the NCA will attend the first few meetings of the class or services with the Fellow to provide onsite support, such as helping the Fellow complete enrollment paperwork and become comfortable in the setting. As importantly, the NCA will observe the class content, the instructor or facilitator’s interaction with the Fellow, and the Fellow’s participation in the programming. Prior to enrolling in the Fellowship, Fellows have not typically attended community-based services—other than school—on their own, and this navigation support helps increase their comfort level; it also allows the NCA and Fellow to mutually determine whether the programming and the provider are a good fit.
Some of the most common services that Fellows receive, both because of referrals and as provided by Advance Peace, include:
- Development of LifeMAPs (100%)
- Life-skills training (83%)
- Anger-management services (77%)
- Financial management (77%)
- Employment services (61%)
- Healthcare services (46%)
- Mental-health services (41%)
- Educational services (40%)
- Recreational services (34%)
- Transportation services (32%)
- Parenting services (31%)
- Substance-abuse counseling (16%)
- Housing services (14%)
Transformative Travel (Cultural, Civic, and Educational Excursions)
Transformative Travel provides an opportunity for Fellows to experience life outside of their city of origin and to safely interact with other Fellows from rival neighborhoods. Since the Fellowship’s inception, there have been over 30 excursions to locations including: San Francisco, Washington, DC, New York City, and international destinations such as Mexico City, Cape Town, Dubai, London, and Paris, with an average of eight trips per year.
To qualify for an excursion, Fellows must be active participants in the program, have completed a LifeMAP, and have established healthy relationships with local AP staff. For out-of-state travel, Fellows must meet all the above criteria and be willing to travel with other Fellows from rival neighborhoods. On excursions, Fellows participate in one or more activities such as completing community service projects, taking college tours, attending, or presenting at conferences, meeting with government officials, and participating in virtual restorative justice dialogues. In addition to engaging Fellows in a range of eye-opening activities, excursions serve as a time for Fellows to bond with each other, especially with their rivals, an experience that is often transformative.
Elders Circle
The Elders Circle represents a powerful addition to the daily mentoring NCAs and program staff provide to Fellows. A group of elder male volunteers (“elders”) are recruited and trained to provide intergenerational mentorship to Fellows. Elders are respected in the community and bring a wide range of expertise including finance, psychology, and philanthropy to the Fellows network. Within the Fellowship structure, the elders meet with Fellows and local AP staff twice a month for a two- hour meeting called “The Elders Circle.” After developing trust with participants, elders provide Fellows with individualized job-search assistance and guidance on topics such as family dynamics and family relationships. Local program staff also benefit from this intergenerational mentorship opportunity. In new cities, Advance Peace will work with established organizations to identify a select group of elders to ensure an extraordinary inter- generational mentoring platform.
Internship Opportunities
Some Fellows can gain job skills through a paid internship. Placement in an internship generally occurs after a Fellow has participated in the Fellowship for at least 18 months. This timing allows the local AP staff to stabilize Fellows and address their basic needs such as housing or substance-use treatment prior to intern placement. To guide placement, local staff work individually with a Fellow to determine the work that interests him and the skills he would like to gain or improve, then facilitate a match with an interested employer. Most intern positions are 20 hours a week for six months and are in city departments or agencies and community- based organizations. Advance Peace will completely subsidize the Fellow’s internship salary through private funding sources where necessary. Providing a wage subsidy encourages a potential employer to take on a Fellow without incurring financial risk. NCAs regularly visit Fellows on the job to promote job retention.
LifeMAP Milestone Allowance
The Milestone Allowance serves several purposes. First, it provides an incentive for young men who may otherwise resist engaging in programming or be reluctant to be regular and active participants in Fellowship activities. Second, while the allowance is not large, it serves as an alternative to participating in a street-level economy. Finally, the allowance sends a powerful message to Fellows about their worth. Through the allowances, Fellows receive validation about changes they are making in their lives, acting as a form of positive reinforcement. Allowances are used not only as incentives, but also to let the Fellows know that they have value.