A Taste of Antioch Draws Support From Community Leaders
A Taste of Antioch delivered a very clear message, violence will not be tolerated in Antioch. Guests of the event included major community leaders such as Jack Roddy, Police Chief Jim Hyde, District V Supervisor Federal Glover, Channel 7 news anchor Dan Ashley, Deer Valley High Principle Scott Bergerhouse, and many more.
The Grove had a chance to speak with Antioch Police Chief Jim Hyde on the Youth Intervention Network. Chief Hyde has been involved with YIN for over 4 years. He is one of the co-founders along with Iris Archuleta. According to Chief Hyde, the infancy of the program was sparked over a meet and greet lunch between himself and Iris. They began talking about how great it would be if Antioch families had a network of support, especially with respect to family life.
Both Iris and Jim agreed that past attempts to cure youth violence in Antioch were met with little success. Something was wrong with the system that needed desperately to be changed. They realized that if a program was to be successful it would have to be based on solid statistics. This approach is different than some intervention programs that only measure past results, instead YIN analyzes anticipated numbers and tailors the right fitting solutions. According to Chief Hyde, “the numbers provide a solid guideline for what needs to be changed or in some instances not changed.”
There is heavy engagement between YIN and local school districts. Hyde explained that the Police Activities League is one of numerous channels where community networks and YIN involvement flow into local academia.
Other programs include collaborative ventures such as Reach, “A community initiative that combines APD, Antioch Unified School District, Contra Costa County Probation Department and RH. Upwards of 1,000 youths annually are served through this accountability-based educational, counseling and treatment related diversionary services as a proven and proactive alternative to the criminal justice system. Statistics show less than 8 percent recidivism. Over 92% of participating minors and their parents have successfully completed program requirements including mandatory REACH services.”
Chief Hyde’s ability to integrate the community into the school system is due in part to his own upbringing. His father, uncles, and grandmother were teachers. This allowed Hyde to observe first hand the inner dynamics of the school system.
Iris and Hyde have crafted YIN around the idea of high performing communities. Instead, of just working in individual silos YIN encourages the community to network silos to create mutual support.
Full Audio Recap of Event Speakers:
Audio requires adobe flash found here.
Event photos can be found on the Grove’s photo stream.