FY 2008 G.R.E.A.T. Program

The Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) program is a life-skills competency program designed to provide students with the skills they need to avoid gang pressure and youth violence. G.R.E.A.T.'s violence prevention curricula help students develop values and practice behaviors that will help them avoid destructive activities. G.R.E.A.T. program staff coordinate project activities with federal, regional, state, and local agencies, as well as individuals from community and civic groups. The goal of the program is to train criminal justice professionals to deliver a school-based curriculum that teaches life-skills competencies, gang awareness, and violence-avoidance techniques.

The town of Guttenberg will use grant funds to provide the elementary and middle school components to all fourth and sixth graders at the Anna L. Klein School. The families component will be offered to a minimum of 30 families during the grant period. Families may participate through a voluntary basis or through referral from school guidance counselors, teachers, and other community service providers. The families component may also become an alternative sentencing option for the town's municipal court, as the municipal court judge has expressed an interest in mandating participation for families of youth who have become involved in the criminal justice system.

CA/NCF