Gwen’s Girls to manage new service aimed at diverting youth from justice system

Rob Taylor Jr. - Courier Staff Writer

2 years ago

GWEN’S GIRLS AND THE BLACK GIRLS EQUITY ALLIANCE HELD ITS SEVENTH ANNUAL EQUITY SUMMIT AND AWARDS CEREMONY RECENTLY AT THE SHERATON STATION SQUARE.

Not every problem requires a call to 911.

For Dr. Kathi Elliott, the outspoken CEO of Gwen’s Girls, a minor issue here, a minor issue there can oftentimes be solved not through handcuffs or a jail cell, but through trained personnel and mediators who have young people’s best interests at heart.

Enter “Caring Connections for YOUth,” a new Allegheny County-wide initiative that will serve as a pre-arrest diversion option for youth; girls and boys.

Caring Connections for YOUth will give everyone, including school officials, police, other youth, family members, etc., a chance to call “211” instead of “911,” and then press “#3” to be connected with a live person who can take the name of the young person who may be in need of help. Professionals will then follow up and attempt to meet with the youth in question, with family involvement.

“The ultimate goal is to stop the usual calling of 911 for a lot of incidences that can be addressed in the community,” Dr. Elliott told the New Pittsburgh Courier. “This is community-led…a lot of youth are referred (to different services) from the back-end (penal system). Let’s try to do it as a prevention (before the penal system).”

“211” is managed by the United Way of Pennsylvania. Dr. Elliott said the “#3” service, managed by Gwen’s Girls, is currently up and running. While the goal of Caring Connections for YOUth is to reduce the number of youth arrests and those referred for system involvement, another long-term goal is to also see a reduction in racial disparities which has persisted despite a multitude of system and community-based efforts. “As the Allegheny County Court President Judge, I have witnessed countless cases where arrest was an avoidable consequence for our youth. We can no longer deny the role trauma and poverty play in bringing young people to the attention of law enforcement and subsequently the courts,” Court of Common Pleas President Judge Kim Berkeley Clark said in a Dec. 15 statement. “This program will help disrupt the cradle to prison pipeline that far too many youth of color face.”

According to a 2019 report from the local Black Girls Equity Alliance, Black girls are 10 times more likely than White girls, and Black boys are seven times more likely than White boys, to be referred to the justice system.

“As the data reflects, far too many children, especially Black children, continue to be referred to the juvenile justice system for behaviors as minor as disorderly conduct in schools,” Dr. Elliott said in a statement. “We need to do more as a community to divert these types of cases and youth from system involvement, and as an alternative provide early, trauma-focused intervention and prevention services to address their needs to set them on a path for success.”

Dr. Elliott added: “There are great organizations in our city and county that offer support and services, however, families, schools and systems often don’t know about them or how to access them. We found that this is a critical barrier that needs to be addressed if we want to see systemic change. There has been a lot of funding granted to many organizations for violence prevention and intervention supports and services. We want to help ensure youth, families, schools, and systems get connected to these great services.”

Dr. Elliott told the Courier that initially, a focus will be on collaborating with communities and school districts that have higher rates of referrals to Juvenile Court, such as the Mon Valley, Penn Hills, Braddock, East Pittsburgh, and parts of the city proper. Ten “Community Based Resource Coordinators” will be responsible for receiving intake information, developing and utilizing a comprehensive referral network, and providing case management and ongoing follow up. Over a two-year period, Dr. Elliott is confident that this new service can greatly reduce, even eliminate racial disparities seen in referrals to the juvenile justice system.