Youth violence prevention program shown to reduce arrests by 75%

Documentary filmmaker Antoinette “Ajay” June films Game Changer Janaya Frilot in Denver.

Game Changers hug at the Empower Youth conference in April 2024. (Photo: Miss Money Shot Media)

A Game Changer shares her story in a documentary spotlighting survivors’ resilience, courage and healing. (Photo: Miss Money Shot Media)

A CU Boulder-led initiative to reduce youth violence has been associated with a 75% decline in arrests for murder, assault, robbery and other youth crimes in recent years.

“We now have concrete data to show that when communities come together and mobilize, we can prevent youth violence, even in urban settings with a very high burden,” said senior author Beverly Kingston, director of CU Boulder’s Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence.

The study assessed the efficacy of the Youth Violence Prevention Center-Denver (YVPC-Denver), one of five university-community partnerships that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established after the 1999 Columbine High School shooting.

Homicide is the third leading cause of death for youth, aged 10 to 24, and the leading cause of death among Black youth, according to the CDC.

Building a ‘youth violence prevention infrastructure’ 

In 2011, YVPC-Denver began working with community organizations in Park Hill and other Denver neighborhoods to get at the root causes of and potential solutions for youth violence. 

“Just like we have roads and bridges that we put money toward, we need to build an infrastructure that supports violence prevention,” said Kingston.

In partnership with schools and faith and sports organizations, the program, called Communities That Care, provided 3,000 youth, aged 6 to 18, with training on how to handle anger and peacefully resolve conflict.

It also worked with pediatricians to develop screenings for kids and get them help if they seemed at high risk of committing violence. Through mini-grants, it helped match teens with positive adult role models.

The Power of One is one of the most visible outgrowths of the initiative. The effort, led by a group of young people known as the Game Changers, uses social media campaigns, podcasts and block parties to send a message that violence is not normal.

The Game Changers also produced a film, Breaking the Cycle: Stories of Strength and Survival of Gun Violence, and developed an app that connects youth with peers for help handling food insecurity, mental health issues or gang violence.

“Sometimes the people who are causing the violence are just youth having trouble at home and having a hard time getting the help they need,” said Game Changer Annecya Lawson, who joined the program after a friend was fatally shot. 

“When these kids see somebody their age, who looks like them, doing stuff for the community, it can have a big impact.”

Showing progress 

The study analyzed arrest data for the five years prior (2012–16) and five years after (2017–21) Communities that Care was implemented in Park Hill.  Arrests in Park Hill fell 75%—from 1,086 per 100,000 people to 276 per 100,000. 

On average, across 74 Denver neighborhoods, youth arrests fell just 18% during the same period, 
as such arrests were generally falling nationwide. 

The CDC recently renewed and added additional funding to the program. The Colorado Health Foundation, a community partner, is also contributing.

YVPC will soon launch a new campaign, Healing Out Loud, that focuses on mental health support for youth dealing with grief and trauma.