On average, there is one young black homicide victim in Boston every two weeks. Young black males are 39 times more likely than young white males to be murdered.

These statistics come from the Mass. Department of Public Health, which looks at police records that show approximately 45 percent of all homicides in 2011 were committed in Dorchester.

Spurred by these numbers, Northeastern professor Dr. Gia Barboza began working with the Youth Violence Prevention Collaborative to take a look at what kind of factors might lower the risk for this demographic.

The result is an ambitious study, which is scheduled to be released this month, that highlights the relationship between negative adolescent behaviors and what she terms “meaningful employment.” Along the way, the study dispels myths and incorrect perceptions of these youth.

“The novelty of the initiative was that really, there’s not much research about meaningful employment and positive youth development principles,” said Barboza.

It was during a particularly violent weekend, after the fourth of July in 2010, that Barboza began the second half of her work in three sections of Dorchester: Franklin Field, Franklin Hill, and Bowdoin-Geneva. That was when, she wrote, it was time to re-evaluate the students’ home environments.
“The following week I noticed despair on the faces of several youth which ultimately led us to think deeply about the role of trauma,” Barboza said.

At the Jeremiah E. Burke High School, the students Barboza saw dealt with eviction, homelessness, caring for siblings, and the ever-present threat of violence. Many of them engaged in risk-taking behavior. This was what she wanted to replace with the “three-tier” mentoring model and year-round employment.

“When you’re dealing with kids who have been traumatized, you need to do something a little bit differently… I don’t think enough people working with these kids know these things,” Barboza said.
As part of the program, the high school students had to adhere to several rules. They were required to check in with mentors and always be punctual. For a change of environment, classes were moved to Roxbury Community College. And on top of that, everyone was placed in a job.

One thing Barboza noted was that kids knew they needed to have paid employment. According to the study, an overwhelming majority, 60 percent of the participants, put their paychecks towards meeting basic needs such as giving money to their parents and paying bills.

“The first thing these youths need is pay. It’s the most empowering part,” she said. “They learn the meaning of work.”

In between school and work, the students also volunteered at the YMCA or the local elementary schools. This third step in the mentoring process was seen as a way to pass on the notion of positive role models to younger students. Barboza calls the “three-tier” model a powerful tool; the students took their roles very seriously.

Between the summers of 2010 and 2011, collected data showed, there were much lower instances of tardiness, truancy, fighting, and authority conflict among the participants. By the end of the study, the occurrences of negative behavior had dropped by almost half during the period students were employed.

A log of the students’ responses while meeting with their mentors only reinforces the numbers. Youth attributed employment to bigger changes, like “being a better role model for my little brother,” “helping me lay out my goals and think about what I want out of my education,” and “keeping me off the streets.”

Each year, there is a big push to increase funding for youth summer jobs. Barboza says that while summer is a good turning-point, the immediate employment benefits are lost once the school year begins.

“Once the summer program ends, there are long-term benefits, but the immediate benefits are gone when you don’t have year-round employment to keep these kids motivated and focused,” she said.
Barboza also criticizes the process organizations have to go through each year to secure funds, which never seem to be enough. If there was a system to allocate money instead of having them scrambling at the last minute, non-profits could employ an even larger number of youth, she says. This leads to the next step: providing jobs in the private sector.
“When you ask these kids, the number one thing they said they needed was a job. And once jobs in private sectors open up, kids can show what they can do,” she said.