Calif. police receive $1.5M for youth gang reduction

edhat.com

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The South Coast Task Force on Youth Gangs is pleased to report that the cities of Santa Barbara, Carpinteria and Lompoc have received $1.5 million in state grant funding for youth gang reduction, intervention, and prevention activities. The three cities will each receive $500,000 over two years for a total of $1.5 million from the California Board of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

The South Coast Task Force on Youth Gangs is comprised of governmental, non-profit, and philanthropic social service agencies that work directly with at-risk youth. The Task Force meets regularly to develop and implement strategies to prevent gang violence and provide healthy alternatives to gang activities. Task Force members include the cities of Santa Barbara, Goleta, and Lompoc, Santa Barbara Unified School District, Community Action Commission, UCSB, Police Activities League, the Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, Santa Barbara County Probation, and the District Attorney's Office.

Over the past five years, the South Coast Task Force on Youth Gangs has been awarded nearly $2.8 million dollars in state CalGRIP grant funds for strategies targeted to the needs of each city. While the programs funded will vary slightly in each community, each city is implementing a comprehensive strategy of intensive case management, support for becoming credit compliant and finishing school job search skills, on-the-job training, and substance abuse prevention and recovery for at-risk teens. The plans for each city's use of the grant funds are attached.

Full Story: Santa Barbara Cities Receive Gang Grants