The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), in partnership with the JPRC, were funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) under its Continuum of Care for Local Communities grant program to implement the Supporting Youth Success in PA – Statewide Planning & Assessment Initiative project. This funding will support the design, implementation, and sustainment of local coordinated continuums of care and opportunity for at-risk and system-involved youth in the Commonwealth, particularly in areas with limited resources/high levels of need. The project will engage state and local partners throughout Pennsylvania’s youth-serving infrastructure through a comprehensive and collaborative systems mapping, assessment, and planning process. The ultimate objective is the creation of a comprehensive statewide plan built on detailed cross-system data analysis offering funding, policy, and program recommendations to guide PA’s youth-focused services.
A press conference to launch this project and another Continuum of Care grant awarded to the City of Philadelphia, was held on Friday, April 12th. Speakers included OJJDP Administrator Liz Ryan, PCCD Executive Director Michael Pennington, Deputy Director of Philadelphia’s Office of Criminal Justice Lisa Varon, the Founder/Executive Director of the Bench Mark Program Will Keifer, and Shylah Searfoss and Trevor Losch, Youth Participants in the Bench Mark Program. Lori Toscano, the JPRC’s Director of Justice Technical Assistance (pictured), also gave remarks about the project. A video and other photos from the event can be found here.
