Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined the Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) and Thrive Chicago to announce the City’s latest investments to advance the ten recommendations announced at last year’s Thrive Opportunity Youth Summit to reconnect young people back to school and jobs. The City will provide funding for the Choose to Change program and Neighborhood Reconnection Hubs; two programs that offer a unique new approach to serving Chicago’s most at-risk youth and builds off the Mayor’s plan to provide universal mentoring for men in high crime areas. The City will invest $300,000 in Choose to Change, a six-month community-based intervention program that combines trauma-informed therapy provided by Children’s Home + Aid, with intensive mentorship and advocacy provided by Youth Advocate Programs to reduce criminal behavior and improve academic outcomes for at-risk youth ages 13-18. Youth are referred to the program through CPS option and neighborhood schools, SOAR centers, CPS Safety and Security, and Juvenile Probation. The University of Chicago Crime Lab has preliminary results that show a 47 percent reduction in arrests for violent crimes for youth up to two years following their participation in the program. The Chicago Sports Alliance provided funding for the first 100 youth of 2018, and the City’s investment will support a second group of approximately 100 this year, with additional funding anticipated for 2019. To date, the program has served 500 youth in Englewood. The Choose to Change announcement was made at Thrive Chicago’s Opportunity Youth Summit.