Strategy

Organizational Development

For the past 21 years, Roca has worked with disengaged and disconnected young people in order to support them to change their behaviors over time and to shift the trajectories of their lives to live out of harm’s way and become economically independent. After years of hard work, reflection, demonstrated success and learning, Roca is ready to grow and promote its high-risk youth intervention model as one of the solutions to reducing violence and poverty for disengaged and disconnected young adults regionally and nationally. This strategic plan lays out the path for starting to scale impact over the next three years and includes a framework from which to determine future growth.

We can demonstrate that, contrary to public opinion, working with older teens and young adults is not hit or miss, but that when we engage them where they are, physically and developmentally, spend time building trust over years as necessary, and support them to move through stages of behavior change, they can, more often than not, succeed. The advancement of the Roca High-Risk Youth Intervention Model, the impact of the economy on very high-risk young people, increasing requests for assistance and training, and Roca’s commitment to young people, necessitate an expanded strategy for our work.

The overall goal of Roca’s Campaign for the Future is to promote the high-risk youth intervention model as one of the solutions to reducing violence and poverty for disengaged and disconnected young adults in the country. The Campaign has four goals.

• Expand High Risk Youth Intervention Model (Chelsea/Revere/east Boston/Charlestown) and demonstrate as an evidence-based model. Read more here.
• Business Development: Expand transitional employment and jobs creation. Read more here.
• Replicate the High-Risk Youth Intervention Model in Springfield, Massachusetts. Read more here.
• Knowledge Sharing, Learning, and Advocacy Agenda to further high-risk youth intervention, including the creation of a network for principle-based leadership

We believe that disengaged and disenfranchised individuals can change their behaviors over time to shift the trajectories of their lives to live out of harm’s way and become economically independent. Most importantly we love and believe in young people. It is our enormous privilege to spend time with them and support them in their efforts to change their lives. Over the next few years we hope to get better at what we do and be worthy of serving the young people that we know need our attention.