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Funding stuff that works

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Illinois

Showing his commitment to mentoring programs he intends to bolster fight crime and gun violence, Mayor Rahm Emanuel attended a Becoming a Man meeting at Morgan Park High School Friday.

“You guys haven’t given up on yourselves, and the city shouldn’t give up on you,” Emanuel told a group of a dozen Morgan Park students known as the Dreamchasers. He was joined at the meeting by Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th).

Emanuel’s visit came the day after he touted a three-year, $36 million commitment to youth mentoring as a key part of his comprehensive plan to rein in crime and gun violence in the city.

“I wanted people to see this firsthand,” he said of his visit to the high school.

* Mark Brown tagged along…

The main activity of Friday’s session was an exercise in which the boys split into two teams and made paper airplanes that they were supposed to fly across the room.

The mayor mostly watched but took one turn as the paper-plane launcher. It flew back in a loop and hit him in the face.

Afterward, Anderson asked the students to assess their performance.

The plane maker for the losing team took the blame for being too slow to produce one that would fly.

“That was awesome. You manned up. It’s about owning the things you do, good or bad. You didn’t put the blame on others,” Anderson told him.

It might seem silly, but it’s in such small lessons that B.A.M. communicates the values of self-responsibility and integrity that seem to have been lost on the young people pulling the triggers.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 2:35 pm

Comments

Is it not programs like these that Rahm (along with Rauner) has been busy cutting away at for the past few of years?

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 2:39 pm
If the city wants to help these kids, they can fully fund an education for each in the highest-rated regional public or private high schools combined with a free ride to a high-quality private college or public university. As if they were kids in, say, Glencoe. And if their families have to move to get to these educational resources, make affordable housing available wherever those resources are. As we know, high-quality k-12 resources tend to be in located high-income nighborhoods.

Mayor Rahm knows this. And the money is available in Chicago, a wealthy global city.

Sure, the kids aren’t harmed by these youth mentoring programs. And local providers may benefit from the grants. But they do have a flavor of blaming the victim. And these kids face extraordinarily high odds.

Comment by Cassandra Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:03 pm
Scouting works too, but requires a parent.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:14 pm
>It flew back in a loop and hit him in the face.

In Illinois, I think we call that progress. /s

Comment by Earnest Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:39 pm
== Scouting works too, but requires a parent. ==

Yes, it does … and some dedicated leaders.

Comment by RNUG Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:39 pm
I would note that many of the parents are in jail, thanks to Illinois’ vigorous pursuit of mass incarceration.

Comment by Cassandra Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:42 pm
Should have added … There are a number of youth oriented programs, some faith based and some not, that are modeled on the Scout program and generally get good results.

Comment by RNUG Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 3:44 pm
“If the city wants to help these kids, they can fully fund an education for each in the highest-
rated regional public or private high schools…”
Whoah there! Who is going to decide which existing students get bumped out of the slot they earned at these high schools, to replace them with these students- you?

“…combined with a free ride to a high-quality private college or public university.”
Where does it say in the Constitution that everyone has to go to college anyway? With the cost of education these days, maybe our society as a whole could benefit more if he had more tradesmen, welders, etc.? I struggle to find an honest and competent auto mechanic.

“As if they were kids in, say, Glencoe.”
A dose of all-out class warfare thrown in for good measure? How do you know that the families who live in Glencoe didn’t take three or four generations to make it there?

My great-grandfather came to Chicago about the turn of the (last) century, and he died at age 54. My dad is a history buff and has his death certificate. Occupation is listed as “laborer.” My dad has a university degree and so do I, which I was able to afford with a military scholarship. It takes time.

This looks like a good program for these kids, especially if they have no parents around. Maybe the military could benefit them when it comes to discipline. Uncle Sam is always looking.

Comment by Payback Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 4:26 pm
I enjoyed my time in scouting, truly.

But I am not aware of a single independent academic study showing that Cub Scouts/Boy Scouts improves academic performance or reduces arrest rates, particularly among at-risk kids.

Maybe I am wrong?

And maybe it does.

BSA should certainly fund a study of they haven’t.

To the post though: what is important is that it seems that what is driving funding decisions is actual, measurable outcomes.

Not who has the most connected lobbyists.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 4:53 pm
== Sure, the kids aren’t harmed by these youth mentoring programs ==

Sure about that?

== what is important is that it seems that what is driving funding decisions is actual, measurable outcomes.

Not who has the most connected lobbyists ==

Yes, it is important that it seems that way.

Don’t be too sure about that, either.

Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 5:26 pm
Yes. We need more early intervention & teaching ‘civics’, dealing with others, as well as conflict resolution.

Concentrating on test scores & STEM is swell, but kids have to live long enough to make that worthwhile.

Spend some time reviewing Jim Brown’s recent comments.

Comment by sal-says Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 5:33 pm
@crazybleedingheart

It took Google and 3 minutes to discover that Youth Guidance doesn’t have a lobbyist in Springfield or at City Hall.

I should’ve added that there is often a big gap between what is popular and what is proven effective.

Here is a good example: D.A.R.E. Funding DARE used to be really popular. Turns out, the program doesn’t reduce drug use.

Another: Abstinence-only programs. Popular in some parts. Not only to they not reduce teen pregnancy or teen sex — predictably. They don’t even reduce condom use.

This summer, Governor Rauner pledged to restore funding for popular at education programs. Wanna bet on whether there is any evidence that participating in those programs leaves students measurably more prepared for college ag programs?

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 26, 16 @ 7:55 pm
https://www.youth-guidance.org/board-of-directors/

Comment by crazybleedingheart Tuesday, Sep 27, 16 @ 7:12 am