Stories – Friends of YJI

Dr. Matt Adams, Superintendent

The Youth Justice Initiative (YJI) plays a critical role in our community by emphasizing personal accountability, healing, and community engagement....

Testimonials

Russ Trimble, WDM Mayor

YJI identifies at-risk youth and provides them the education and support they need to stay in school and be successful....

Testimonials

Shannon

The thing that stands out to me about the YJI program is they don’t give up on you. They continue...

Testimonials

Molly

During my time with YJI, a lot has changed about my life. Before I was in the program, I wasn’t...

Success Stories

Cali

When I met Cali for the first time she was asking all sorts of questions and demanding that our staff...

Success Stories

Maria

Maria moved to WDM from Texas. She has five sisters. She and her youngest sister live at home. Maria’s father...

Success Stories

Tyrone

When we met Tyrone, we were unsure if he had the intellectual ability to participate in YJI. Tyrone was a...

Success Stories

Jessica

At Jessica’s first Youth Justice Initiative (YJI) circle she appeared to be uncomfortable, speaking very quietly and giving one-word answers...

Success Stories

Darren

Darren was 15 years old and shoplifted. He was only allowed to leave the house to go to the grocery...

Testimonials

Erika

When I first entered YJI, I was scared at first because I thought I was going to be in it...

YJI Testimonials & Success Stories