The Minority Youth Violence Prevention project will help prevent youth violence by addressing the elevated risk of violence and crime that exists in many of DeKalb County’s most distressed neighborhoods. Utilizing a public health prevention approach, this project will create a partnership among the DeKalb County Board of Health, the Clarkston Police Department, and departments of DeKalb County Government (the DeKalb County Police Department and the DeKalb County Human Development Department). Combining community policing approaches with public health preventive measures, this project will identify hot spot areas with a high concentration of at-risk minority males.

The Minority Youth Violence Prevention project aims to decrease violence in DeKalb County among youth ages 10 to 18. Intended outcomes include:

  1.  reduce gateway violence and crimes perpetrated by minority youth,
  2.  Increase number of partners who will develop and implement effective, comprehensive approaches to prevent youth violence that are tailored to the needs and strengths of individual communities,
  3.  Increase access to needed public health and/or social services.