Youth Violence Prevention Week is being observed in communities across the country from April 7-11, making now a good time to examine one of the most undermining influences on helping youth make a positive transition to adulthood. Youth violence may be physical, sexual, or emotional, and the role played by youth is similarly multidimensional, as they may be victims, witnesses, or perpetrators. Violence may occur in their homes, schools, communities, and other public places, across urban, suburban, and rural lines and across racial and cultural groups.

While national trends suggest that youth violence is on the decline, the numbers are still astonishing. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, homicide is the second leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 15 and 24 years old, after injuries. According to the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence, 46 million youth are exposed to violence in their homes and communities each year - that is the equivalent to almost two-thirds of the 76 million youth currently residing in the United States. To continue reading, click here.

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The new National Wraparound Implementation Center (NWIC) uses innovative approaches to provide intensive support to states, communities, and organizations to implement Wraparound effectively. NWIC is a partnership among the three leading universities involved with Wraparound implementation: The University of Washington School of Medicine; Portland State University School of Social Work; and the University of Maryland School of Social Work. These three universities collaborate to ensure sites have access to comprehensive support for implementing model-adherent, high quality Wraparound for children and youth with behavioral health needs and their families. To continue reading, click here.

The two-year grant program Thrive@25, which was awarded to The Institute for Innovation & Implementation and several partners, and focuses on the issue of homelessness among youth, is seeking youth participants for a study that will help identify the risk and protective factors associated with homelessness for youth with foster care histories. The study seeks youth who are age 30 or under and struggle with homelessness and have a foster care history; the youth will receive small stipends for answering a questionnaire and participating in a focus group or interview. To continue reading, click here.