Youth mentoring program hopes to curb summer violence in Decatur

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — A Decatur nonprofit is working to arm young men with the skills they need to stay safe, and out of trouble, as school is about to let out. Thursday marked the final day for the Street Smart Male Violence program.

Jaylynn Norman said even as a teenager he's already witnessing violent crime in his community.

"I live in a neighborhood where a lot of violence goes on, where a lot of crime goes on — the Wabash area — and I want to get out of that," Norman told WAND News.

He wants to avoid getting caught up in a gang or illegal activity, so he signed up for the Street Smart Male Violence Prevention Program.

"Teaches you about gang violence mostly, neighborhood violence, what to do, and how to not get into it, and if you're in it what steps to take to get out of it," Norman explained.

The partnership with SIMP, Inc. and Decatur Police Department offers 11 weeks of male empowerment programming.

"Being able to relate, to be able to really understand who they are as young men, what they're looking for, how their situation is at home, and how we can better help them cope with the stresses of the outside world," Patrolman Javion Crisman told WAND News.

They teach kids how to use their voice, respect others and introduce them to a police mentor.

"We don't want them to end up meeting police the other way. So this way they get to meet police officers in a friendly environment where they get to know them and work with them," Professor Evyonne Hawkins, the SIMP Inc. R3 Reentry Facilitator, explained.

The program serves kids from 5th through 12th grade.

"We want to stay out of violence," Ya'Hahn Reed, a Decatur student, told WAND News.

Reed may look young, but Professor Hawkins said targeting students between 10 and 15 years old is key for early intervention.

"This is going to help our community to grow a new generation of boys who understand that their actions have consequences. So therefore they have to be careful with the things that they do and the things that they say," Professor Hawkins said.

Students graduating from the program will be treated to a White Sox game and lunch in Chicago in June.