Broader Urban Involvement and Leadership Development Program (BUILD) (OJJDP Model Program Guide)

Office of Justice Programs, Innovation - Partnerships – Safer Neighborhoods

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Serving Children, Families and Communities

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Broader Urban Involvement and Leadership Development Program (BUILD)

Intervention:

Chicago, Illinois’s BUILD (for Broader Urban Involvement and Leadership Development) program combines several popular gang prevention strategies in an ambitious attempt to curb gang violence in some of the city’s most depressed and crime-ridden neighborhoods. Founded on the principle that youths join gangs because they lack other, more constructive opportunities and outlets, BUILD tries to “reach out to young people and provide alternatives to increasing violence” by

Deploying trained street workers, who seek to establish a rapport with gang-involved youth and serve as positive role models
Organizing afterschool sports programs and other recreational activities for at-risk and gang-involved youths
Designing and delivering violence prevention curricula in local schools
Designing and delivering a violence prevention curriculum at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center
Providing career training, college counseling, and financial aid to students from low-income schools
Working with corporate sponsors, community leaders, parents, and activists to coordinate local antiviolence initiatives and coalitions

Established in 1969 to address gang violence in Chicago’s West Town community, BUILD has since expanded its activities to six other low-income, high-crime areas (Cabrini–Green, Humboldt Park, Logan Square, Ravenswood, Lakeview, and Uptown). The program’s violence prevention curriculum at the local detention center reaches both male and female youths from throughout Cook County. BUILD estimates its various activities to date have involved more than 77,000 youths from around the Chicago area.

Evaluation Methodology:

Study 1
In 1999 a team of researchers from Loyola University examined the impact of BUILD’s detention center curriculum on detainees’ recidivism rates. Their evaluation used a quasi-experimental design—comparing a random sample of 60 BUILD students with a matched random sample of 60 detainees who received no BUILD instruction. While some girls were included in the program, most participants were African-American males, ages 10–17. Juveniles in both the treatment and control groups were released into the community after their stays and followed for 1 year to determine their rates of recidivism and time to recidivism. The amount of time (or number of classroom days) BUILD participants were involved in the program was also tracked to determine whether length of stay affected recidivism patterns.

In the mid-1990s the Center for Latino Research at DePaul University also conducted an 18-month nonexperimental process evaluation, assessing the implementation of all of BUILD’s programs in two of its target communities: Cabrini–Green and Uptown. This evaluation collected service records and qualitative data from interviews with staff, clients, focus groups, site visits, and monthly reports to form a subjective impression of how well BUILD staff were meeting their stated objectives of community resource development, prevention, and remediation.

Evaluation Outcome:

Study 1
The Loyola study of BUILD’s detention program found that BUILD youths had significantly lower recidivism rates than their counterparts from the control group. According to the study, only 33 percent of BUILD youths recidivated within 1 year, versus 57 percent of non-BUILD participants. BUILD participants who did recidivate also had a longer average time to recidivism than youths from the control group (9.6 months versus 7.6 months). Finally, the study found that BUILD students who recidivated spent significantly fewer days in the BUILD classroom (an average of 6.17) than nonrecidivators (an average of 9.35 days).

The Center for Latino Research’s process evaluation of BUILD found that the program was extremely well implemented. Overall, the team reported, “the program’s objectives were accomplished and in many instances exceeded, [owing] to the efforts of BUILD’s dedicated staff.“ BUILD’s policy of hiring staff with strong connections to the local community (including former gang members) and its strong emphasis on staff development were repeatedly identified as critical factors in the program’s success.

Other Information:

References:

Thompson, David, and Leonard A. Jason. 1986. “Effective School-Based Intervention: The Evaluation of BUILD’s Gang Membership Prevention Program.” Final Evaluation Report. Chicago, Ill.: Dysfunctioning Child Center of Michael Reese Hospital.

Lurigio, Arthur, G. Bensiger, and S.R. Thompson. 2000. “A Process and Outcome Evaluation of Project BUILD: Years 5 and 6.” Unpublished Report. Chicago, Ill.: Loyola University, Department of Criminal Justice.

Mendez, Mervin. Positive Choices. Chicago, Ill: DePaul University, Center for Latino Research.

Program Specification:

Current Rating:

Promising

Expected Date of Re-Review:

Winter 2013

Program Type:

Academic Skills Enhancement

Afterschool/Recreation

Classroom Curricula

Community Awareness / Mobilization

Gang Prevention

Ethnicity:

African American

Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

White

Gender:

Both

Age:

10 - 17

Special Populations:

Less Serious Offender

Serious Offenders

Truant/Dropout

Young Offender

Target Settings:

Urban

Problem Behaviors:

Aggression/Violence

Delinquency

Gang Activity

Risk & Protective Factors:

Risk

Community

Community crime / High crime neighborhood

Community instability

Neighborhood youth in trouble

Social and physical disorder / Disorganized neighborhood

Family

Broken home

Family history of problem behavior / Parent criminality

Individual

Antisocial behavior and alienation / Delinquent beliefs / General delinquency involvement / Drug dealing

Early sexual involvement

Favorable attitudes toward drug use/Early onset of AOD use/Alcohol and/or drug use

Poor refusal skills

Teen parenthood

Victimization and exposure to violence

Peer

Association with delinquent and/or aggressive peers

Gang involvement / Gang membership

School

Dropping out of school

Inadequate school climate / Poorly organized and functioning schools / Negative labeling by teachers

Low academic achievement

Negative attitude toward school / Low bonding / Low school attachment / Commitment to school

School suspensions

Truancy / Frequent absences

Protective

Community

Presence and involvement of caring, supportive adults in the community

Prosocial opportunities for participation / Availability of neighborhood resources

Rewards for prosocial community involvement

Family

Opportunities for prosocial family involvement

Individual

Healthy / Conventional beliefs and clear standards

Positive expectations / Optimism for the future

Social competencies and problem solving skills

Peer

Involvement with positive peer group activities

School

Opportunities for prosocial school involvement

Presence and involvement of caring, supportive adults in school

Additional Information:

Status:

Program is in operation at this time.

Performance Measures:

Suggested OJJDP Performance Measures for the Program Types(s):

Delinquency Prevention
Academic Skills Enhancement
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
School Programs
Academic Skills Enhancement
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
Delinquency Prevention
Afterschool/Recreation
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
Delinquency Prevention
Classroom Curricula
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
School Programs
Classroom Curricula
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
Gangs
Gang Prevention
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF

Contact Information:

Program Developer:
Freddy Calixto
Broader Urban Involvement and Leadership Developme
1223 North Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
Phone: 7732272880
Fax: 7732273012
Email: Click Here
Website: Click Here

Training & TA Provider:
Freddy Calixto
BUILD
1223 North Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
Phone: 7732272880
Email: Click Here
Website: Click Here

Program Locations:
Freddy Calixto
BUILD
1223 North Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622