The Efficacy of a Law Enforcement Youth Mentorship Program: Implications for Attendance and Academic

The purpose of this two-phased, triangulated, parallel mixed-methods program evaluation study was to explore the efficacy of a locally organized law enforcement mentorship program designed to lower the incidence of truancy and other status offenses and examine the impact on academic performance. The study comprised two phases: The first phase (qualitative) concentrated on the perspectives of three focus groups and one leader interview to gather information on the influence of the program on at-risk middle and high school students. The main purpose of the program is to assist at-risk youth in improving school attendance and grades while intervening to reduce status offense behavior by creating positive bonds between program leaders and students. The program's philosophy identifies with three theories described in the theoretical framework of this study. Common patterns and themes were identified from the participants' interviews and analyzed. The SPSS program was used in the second phase (quantitative) to conduct T tests for grades and attendance at the onset of the program and at the end of the program and for recidivism rates. Results of the study indicated that the law enforcement youth mentorship program made a significant difference in the students' attendance but not their academic performance. The program also made a significant improvement in decreasing the rate of recidivism. Recommendations for the program focus on increasing manpower and resources through publicity of the program. One recommendation for future studies is to include interviews with at-risk students and community stakeholders.