Community News

MY Regent Park to address gang involvement in youth

Dixon Hall has received funding to develop and implement crime prevention initiatives that address youth gang activity in our neighbourhood.

The Dixon Hall program is called MY Regent Park (Mobilizing, Mentoring Youth in Regent Park), and will run from November 2009 through to March 2013. The program is organized after the Spergel Model, developed by the United States Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. This model was chosen because of its community focus, which supports the strong foundation of collaborative action that Regent Park agencies and institutions already model.

MY Regent Park focuses on youth ages 11-18 who are at risk of becoming involved in gang activities, or who are already involved in gang activities.

Dixon Hall is the lead agency with five partner agencies: Toronto Christian Resource Centre, Salvation Army, Regent Park Focus Youth Media Arts Centre, Toronto Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club, and Regent Park Community Health Centre. This highly collaborative project has involvement from the many sectors affected by youth gang activity: the TDSB, Toronto Police Services, Youth Justice Services, TCHC and the Regent Park Neighbourhood Initiative.

MY Regent Park will provide outreach to youth at risk of gang joining or already involved in gangs, and their families. Using a project coordinator, youth mentors, a parent worker and a resiliency worker, MY Regent Park will provide support, assistance and alternative options for gang-involved youth, co-coordinating and improving on the number of programs already available. The members of the intervention team will be spread across the partner agencies, supporting our collaborative approach to providing gang activity alternatives for our youth.

Program activities will include:

• tutoring
• provision of youth counselling both individual and group
• anger management such as the Salvation Army’s Red Cap program
• restorative justice program such as the Peace Makers
• Sports activities through the City’s Recreation and Community Centres, the TDSB
• Art initiatives through community programs such as Art Heart, Recreation and Community Centres
• Music initiatives through community programs such as Focus, Recreation and Community Centres, Dixon Hall’s Music School, Regent Park School of Music, TDSB
• involvement in individually chosen community faith activities

Check back on our site for more information and updates as we get this exciting program up and running.

This project is partially funded through the Government of Canada’s National Crime Prevention Strategy.