What is Jump Start?
Since September 1997, our program has been diverting first time juvenile offenders from the traditional legal system by providing an alternative: an eight week series of workshops which develop decision making skills. Each student is assigned a community member as his or her partner, and they work together along with the group through this series of workshops to give the young person the skills necessary to avoid trouble in the future.
Who is Jump Start?
Community members from many walks of life have volunteered as partners for young people and as leaders for the workshop sessions. We have had teachers, bankers, contractors, local business people, ministers, doctors, lawyers, retirees, and parents in the program. No special skills are required, only an interest in kids and a willingness to listen and share your own experiences.
See the Situation Clearly: Discussions help students be more reflective and honest about their behavior. Strategies are shared that could help students identify a situation more clearly and deal with it more effectively.
Goal Setting and Value System: Students define short, medium, and long term goals for themselves and identify any barriers for reaching these goals. Personal values are identified and included in this discussion.
Expand the Possibilities: Through the use of juggling, theatre games, movement exercises, and poetry, the students gain an appreciation for how endless the possibilities are.
Evaluate, Decide, and Act: Discussions and small group activities highlight that there are many possible choices when making a decision. Evaluating the consequences of each choice before acting makes for better decision making.
Expressive Communication: This session explores the awareness and variety of verbal and nonverbal social language skills. Role playing is used to explore how we communicate with others.
Story Telling: Students reflect upon the reason they are in the program and look to the future through the use of story telling. They are challenged to provide vivid details that will bring their personal story to life.
Parents Night: Students and parents think about what is important to them, examine what criteria they use to evaluate their success, and discover that anything is possible if you try.
Community Night: The youth and their connection with the community is explored by discussing how the behavior of one person has a ripple effect and impacts many people in the community.
Goals of Jump Start
- To significantly reduce the number of repeat juvenile offenders.
- To reduce the amount of time between the offense and the consequences for that offense.
- To have the youth be answerable to their community through community service, restitution, and letters of apology.
- To have the community accept ownership of their youth and their problems through adult advocates and community participation.
- To promote communication and interaction between youth, family, and community- especially for at-risk youth.
- To provide closer supervision of youth while on Informal Adjustment.
“The most important aspect, however, is the human element: the mentors are our neighbors, who bring their life-experience to bear on the juvenile’s education process in a caring, personal, one-on-one way. Experience has shown this program to have remarkably low recidivism rate, which speaks volumes for the quality of the program and its mentors. I highly recommend Jump Start.” – Judge Joseph H. Field, Maine District Court
Community Resources
Addiction Resources Center
1-800-224-3805
(207) 443-1260
For Further Information Call:
Willo Wright
Program Coordinator
(207) 865-9267
Brunswick Police Department
(207) 725-5521
Freeport Police Department
(207) 865-4800
Forms:
Mentor Application