NCJ Number
160396
Date Published
1993
Length
5 pages
Annotation
The school-based community centers called Beacons focus on youth development and provide children, youth, and adults with a mix of social services and recreational, educational, and vocational activities in neighborhoods in the five boroughs in New York City.
Abstract
The first 10 Beacons were established in 1991 to create safe havens for children, youth, and families within the communities considered the poorest and most affected by drug abuse, crime, and violence. Nonprofit community-based organizations manage Beacons in collaboration with the Community School Boards; principals; and their own advisory boards of parents, teachers, school administrators, youth, church leaders, and private and city service providers. The city will have 37 Beacons by January 1994, including at least one in every community school district in the city. The central principle underlying the Beacons as a youth development strategy is the importance of increasing the presence of factors that reduce the probability of negative behaviors, increase the probability of positive outcomes, and promote rebounding from traumas among youth in high-risk settings. These factors include increasing opportunities for sustained, high-quality adult-youth relationships, increasing the number of adults who have a collective investment in individual youth, and setting and maintaining high expectations and clear standards. Additional factors include participation in activities that build skills and engage young people in learning about their world and their role in shaping it, opportunities for contribution to the community, continuity, collaboration, and meeting challenges.