Youth Gang Assessment Completed for Guilford County

Youth Gang Assessment Completed for Guilford County

A comprehensive youth gang assessment was completed for Guilford County as part of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Comprehensive Gang Model. This best practice Model is currently being used in Guilford County to address youth gang involvement in the county. As part of the Model, the gang assessment is the first essential step in the design and implementation of a community-wide strategic plan to address its youth gang problem. The Guilford County assessment was conducted by the University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s (UNCG) Center for Youth, Family, and Community Partnerships (CYFCP) in partnership with a steering committee, including Youth Focus, Inc., One Step Further, Inc., and Guilford County Court Alternatives. Additional key partners included the local Juvenile Crime Prevention Council (JCPC), Greensboro Police Department, High Point Police Department, Guilford County Sherriff’s Office, Guilford County School, students and staff, community residents, parents and youth, current and ex-gang members, as well as an array of youth-serving community organizations.

The assessment includes an overview of the Guilford County community and the prevalence of specific risk factors for gang involvement. Data provided by law enforcement data describes statistics on gang-related crime in the county, which includes data from the cities of Greensboro and High Point, and the unincorporated areas in Guilford County. Publically available data from Guilford County schools is synthesized to provide an analysis of gang-related risk factors present within the system and crime and violence incidents across school settings. Additional school data were obtained from surveys administered to School Resource Officers regarding perceptions of gang activity within schools and their perceived ability to effectively deal with it. Surveys were also administered to community youth and adults to ascertain their perceptions of gang activity in their neighborhoods, schools, and day-to-day lives. Interviews with gang-involved youth provide additional first-person understanding of gang life in the county.

Based on all data collected, the assessment will be used to guide the next step of the OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Model, which is the development of a strategic plan for prevention, intervention, and suppression activities related to youth gang violence in Guilford County. According to the Model, this next stage will be driven by a diverse, multi-disciplinary steering committee that will coordinate strategies and policy decisions to reduce youth gang activity in Guilford County.

News Release (PDF)

Gang Assessment Meeting Notice (Word Document)

Summary and Recommendations (PDF)

OJJDP Guilford County Gang Assessment Comprehensive Report (PDF)

Overview of the OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Model (PDF)

Community Descriptions (PDF)

Overview of Guilford County Schools School Safety and School Performance (PDF)

Law Enforcement Gangs and Gang Related Crime (PDF)

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency (PDF)

Community Voices and Community and SRO Survey Results (PDF)

Community Programs and Resources (PDF)

Youth Gang Assessment