The Strategies for Youth Model is Unique.
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Strategies for Youth creates pathways for improving police-youth interactions by ...
... using training tools and outreach programming to move officers and youth from conflict to safer interactions.
Our Policing the Teen Brain training provides officers with tools and skills to work more effectively with youth.
We use a game call Juvenile Justice Jeopardy to educate youth about the potential consequences of their actions.
Our work centers around developmentally appropriate, trauma-informed, and racially equitable approaches for policing youth.
Through research reports, opinion pieces and speaking engagements, we promote using a developmentally appropriate approach to policing youth.
We link law enforcement with youth-serving community resources to create additional support for youth and families.
By building capacity and linking officers with resources...
...communities feel safer and police and youth interactions improve.
SFY's results are tangible: public safety improves, communities become more cohesive and there is greater equity in policing of youth.
Strategies for Youth believes that adults who are developmentally competent have more effective interactions with youth.
Here’s how we define that concept: Developmental Competence refers to the understanding that children and adolescents’ perceptions and behaviors are influenced by biological and psychological factors related to their development stage.
SFY is a national policy and training organization dedicated to ensuring best outcomes for youth interacting with law enforcement.
Strategies for Youth (SFY) was founded in 2010 to improve interactions between police and young people, with a focus on youth of color, and to reduce unnecessary arrests and use of force by police against young people.
Approximately 40 percent of youth arrests are for minor or “contempt of cop” offenses with no underlying crimes. The reality of current police/youth relations stems from a combination of factors:
These arrests are unnecessary, avoidable, expensive, and harmful to youth, their families, and their communities.
SFY places a priority on improving outcomes for youth—particularly youth of color—who are at high risk of arrest and violent encounters with law enforcement officials. Our strategies include:
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SFY has surpassed our original 2025 goal! The Stifler Family Foundation has stepped in to match the next $25K we raise.
Help us TRIPLE our impact! Donate Now
$25,000 allows us to educate 5,000 new youth in 2025 with our innovative Juvenile Justice Jeopardy games.
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