Sheriff Youth Mentoring and Career Guidance Program

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

LA County's adoption of President Obama's "My Brother's Keeper community challenge" to close the achievement gap for young people of color, inspired Sheriff leaders to conceive the Youth Mentoring and Career Guidance Program. It's purpose is to proactively increase qualified young people of color and women hired for entry-level law enforcement positions. Community and Senior Services (CSS) collaborated to co-enroll participants as paid work-experience interns through its LA County Youth Jobs (LACYJ) system, and helped structure training and program elements. Forty-one youth completed a Summer 2015 six-week program pilot, and attended the standing-room-only graduation with over 150 family, friends and VIPs. Twelve program graduates applied for and were placed on Sheriff hiring lists. Favorable evaluation questionnaire responses, a video, and positive program results prompted a second Sheriff cohort planned for Summer 2016, a parallel Fire Department program pilot which launched in February 2016, planning for a Probation Department program, and emergence of a Youth Public Safety-Public Service Career Prep Model. These efforts are aimed at increasing the quality of next generation public safety professionals and strengthening community relations by aligning the ethnic and gender profile of public safety agencies, with the demographics of communities they protect and serve.