The agencies affiliated with VGPP provide these services at various sites throughout the Hampton Roads area and currently serve over 6,500 individuals annually. This infrastructure builds on the strength of the multiple agencies committed to the coalition as well as the base capacity of God’s X Gangsters and NSU SSW through Dr. Marvin Feit’s work. God’s X Gangsters has been the motivating factor leading to this collaborative juncture. NSU, SSW (through Dr. Marvin Feit) will continue to act as a facilitating organization assisting VGPP with critical areas of capacity building, Evaluation for cliental and program outcomes, as well as a liaison to various cities public service agencies.

Background:

The agencies affiliated with the Virginia Gang Prevention Partnership (VGPP) for years have separately provided a broad range of services to at-risk youths and families in an effort to curb community violence and reduce the chance that these children will become a part of the problem versus a solution to it. Many of these organizations have received national, state, city, and civic awards for the work they have provided to high needs youth and families in the Hampton Roads area.

Although these separate agencies have strived to make a difference in their own communities, they understand in order to influence society on a larger scale they must come together and stand as a united front. When God’s X Gangsters approached each of these agencies with the ideal of forming a coalition; allowing each agency to maintain their own identity yet agreeing to work as a team to reach at-risk youths and their families they became excited at the prospect of reaching more families and thus having a greater impact in improving Hampton Roads communities.

The agencies understand that the transient nature of at-risk families and the inability of each agency to provide or offer all services needed to these disadvantaged individuals cause many to fall through the cracks. The result is many of these children and young adults do not feel connected to the community as whole, gangs who want to further their own agenda by terrorizing the community target them and many of these children will likely join a gang without positive and effective intervention. Gangs, like at-risk families do not stay within city and locality boundaries which hampers the ability of law enforcement and community agencies bound by city limits to combat the problem effectively. The VGPP has already taken the first steps necessary for organizing this coalition of agencies.

Through quarterly meetings over the last year and a half, the agencies involved have  aligned themselves in program areas that allow for a cohesive team presentation and expands their service ability and sites. This regional level community effort is necessary to stop community violence.

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The community agencies that are apart of the VGPP contacted Dr. Marvin Feit, Dean of The Ethelyn R. Strong School of Social Work, Norfolk State University in 2005 requesting assistance in developing a plan to come together as regional providers to at risk youths and their families. Over the last year and a half, the agencies have reached a consensus regarding their commitment to the project, the mission and goals of the coalition, and have separated themselves into the following program areas: gang prevention / Intervention, day / weekend, and summer camps, empowerment stage shows, drug awareness and prevention, counseling services, job preparation, enhanced educational opportunities, and transitional housing. Although these organizations have proven themselves individually and do work together in the various program areas, we are endeavoring to work even closure as we join with various cities public service teams, to assist them in their collaborative effort for positive change the area of gang education, identification, intervention, and prevention.

Since its establishment in 1935, Norfolk State University (NSU) has always maintained a positive relationship with African American Churches and other faith based organizations in the local area. NSU has a long history of offering assistance and encouragement to community agencies that work and provide services to disadvantaged individuals; it has agreed to do so again for the VGPP.

Clients Serviced:

Families in our target communities are well below poverty level, experience the highest standards of learning failure and dropout rate, and as well live in gang active communities. The major service sites are located in Newport News, Hampton, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, Suffolk, and Chesapeake. According tothe 2000, US census 13.8% of Newport News residents, 11.3% of Hampton residents, 19.4% of Norfolk residents, 16.2% of Portsmouth residents, 6.5% of Virginia Beach residents, and 7.3% of Chesapeake residents live below poverty. All Hampton Roads cities suppress the state’s poverty rate of 9.6% except for Virginia Beach and Chesapeake. We also serve the greater Hampton Roads area in general, by helping teams start programs.

Leadership Development
As funding emerges through this regional work, NSU will work with coalition agencies to enhance leadership skills among their members by providing or permitting the following:
• NSU will assist the coalition agencies in coming to a consensus on the various leadership positions necessary to maintain them as an effective regional provider to at risk families. During quarterly meetings, NSU and the coalition members will elect a committee to oversee the collaborative relationship between coalition agencies. VGPP members will attempt to attend and participate in all city, neighborhood, and community meetings held to address gang violence in the Hampton Roads area.
• NSU staff will offer mentoring to coalition members in regards to developing community relationships and needed grassroots efforts to combat issues effecting at-risk populations
• Empowerment strategies- NSU will provide consultation to the VGPP’s leadership, helping them to build on their strengths
 

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• NSU will schedule a minimum of 2 community development seminars per year over the next 2 years, which will be open to the coalition leadership.
• NSU will authorize travel and seminar costs to at least 3 national leadership conferences during the year and at least 2 coalition members will be allowed at each conference, NSU will also offer additional and continuing community leadership seminars over the next two years.

Community Engagement
In an effort to enhance our relationship with the community, we would like to hire a part time community consultant who is experienced in developing relationships with communities having high rates of poverty and seek to engage the following entities:
• Outreach to at risk communities
• Local Churches
• Community Centers
• Independent cities and localities
• Public school systems
 

Evaluation

As regional funding emerges, NSU may utilize two PhD candidates to work with coalition agencies to develop fuller and more coordinated evaluation measures. This will assist in determining what services offered by the coalition members are most effective in combating gang membership in the population served. The evaluator will track milestones and review activity with project staff. Assessment will be accomplished through questionnaires, direct observations, attendance records, and the behaviors and attitudes of participants enrolled in the services provided. In 2006, Gods X Gangsters provided pre and post tests on various community programs to NSU asking if they were of use in proving the effectiveness of their intervention. Although the materials provided were from various programs, with a variety of outcomes, it was significant in its focus on working with gang involved youth, and it does show that this core agency is very effective in linking with youth.

• We noted that approximately 70- 80% of the children in the Dept of Housing summer program reported a change in the youths self-esteem, perception about gangs, and 60% shared a change of perception about conflict.
• It is interesting to see that equal numbers were reported by the parents of improved behaviors, improved attitudes, and children who came back and talked to their families about the intervention. (70-80%)
• Some of the best data, was that 85% of the Community Leaders who attended a one day
workshop, responded with a request for more information, and reported a written willingness to become part of gang awareness in their communities after training by Gods X Gangsters and associates.