Oct 2023

Scaling Promising Practices in Youth Mentoring

This case study by Results for America highlights the Crime Lab and Education Lab’s role in the City of Chicago’s bold initiative to expand the evidence-based Becoming a Man group mentoring model to serve thousands of young men.

Related Resources
Choose to Change® (C2C®) Program Guide
Other

Choose to Change® (C2C®) Program Guide

Oct 2024

This program guide is intended for community-based organizations working to fill gaps in services and reach an underserved population of youth impacted by violence and trauma.

Building safer communities: Behavioral science innovations in youth violence prevention
Brief

Building safer communities: Behavioral science innovations in youth violence prevention

Oct 2024

This policy brief highlights results from a large-scale randomized controlled trial that evaluated the impact of Choose to Change® (C2C®) on participants’ criminal justice involvement.

Unpacking the Impacts of a Youth Behavioral Health Intervention: Experimental Evidence from Chicago
Academic Paper

Unpacking the Impacts of a Youth Behavioral Health Intervention: Experimental Evidence from Chicago

Oct 2024

This working paper details results from a study of Choose to Change® (C2C®), a trauma-informed cognitive behavioral therapy and intensive mentoring program developed by nonprofits Brightpoint and Youth Advocate Programs, Inc. (YAP).

Improving Programming in Juvenile Detention: The Impact of Project Safe Neighborhoods Youth Outreach Forums
Academic Paper

Improving Programming in Juvenile Detention: The Impact of Project Safe Neighborhoods Youth Outreach Forums

May 2024

This paper presents the results of a randomized controlled trial of a youth outreach forums program run in the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center (JTDC) by the Northern Illinois Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force.

Latest Updates

Comedy and crime fighting join forces for police learning leadership skills
Media Mention
Associated Press
Jun 2025

Comedy and crime fighting join forces for police learning leadership skills

Claudia Lauer for The Associated Press highlights the Policing Leadership Academy’s partnership with The Second City that uses improv exercises to give police leaders skills that can help increase community engagement and reduce violent crime.

How Treating Teens’ Trauma Is Stopping Violence in Chicago
Podcast
Tradeoffs
Jun 2025

How Treating Teens’ Trauma Is Stopping Violence in Chicago

The Tradeoffs Podcast highlights the Crime Lab’s study of Choose to Change, a program that pairs cognitive behavioral therapy with wraparound supports to engage young people who are increasingly disconnected from school and often exposed to high levels of trauma – with the goal of keeping them safe and helping them thrive.

Major Public Safety Associations Participate in Congressional Briefing on Law Enforcement Training Priorities During National Police Week
Web Post
Brooks Bawden Moore Blog
Jun 2025

Major Public Safety Associations Participate in Congressional Briefing on Law Enforcement Training Priorities During National Police Week

Alumni of the Crime Lab’s Policing Leadership Academy (PLA) participated in a bipartisan briefing as part of National Police Week, focusing on key law enforcement training priorities.