DENVER — A new study found that one Denver neighborhood experienced a big drop in youth violence over a five-year period. But the research and program responsible for the decrease is losing its funding.
According to a study led by Beverly Kingston, a sociologist and Director of the University of Colorado Boulder’s Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, in 2016, there were 1,086 youth per 100,0000 young people in Northeast Park Hill. After five years, that number fell to 276 per 100,000 – a 75% decrease.
“The community used something called Communities That Care, which is an evidence-based strategy, really, for organizing a community to address issues like violence. And they interpreted that in their own way. And how that started was community leaders came together, and they formed a coalition, the coalition in Park Hill is called Park Hill Strong,” Kingston said. “That coalition was led by three Black men who grew up in Park Hill and knew what it was like when Park Hill was ground zero for youth violence, and they said,' We don't want this here.”
Kingston said Park Hill Strong started to organize a coalition that included businesses, faith community members, schools, mental health experts, and sports teams.
“They looked at data, and they said, 'What are our risk factors? And they saw from their data that kids didn't feel connected to their community. They saw that there were concerns with young people, like in fourth and fifth grade, already getting engaged in problem behavior, like bringing a weapon to school or getting involved in drugs,” Kingston said.
They also implemented social-emotional learning programs.
“They put it school-wide, in all the schools, in Park Hill and the elementary schools. But then they also took it to the community. So it was in after-school programs. It was in the summer camps. It was in the library. 3,000 young people were exposed to social emotional learning, which teaches young people how to manage their emotions, how to set goals, how to relate well to each other,” Kingston said.
Park Hill Strong, as well as the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, also got young people involved in their solutions-oriented work, including teen Imani Shannon.
“I'm part of the group VIBEE, which stands for violence intervention, building education and empowerment,” Shannon said. “I did live in Park Hill for a significant part of my life. I have friends who have experienced youth violence, and it's really interesting to see how it shapes your experiences and how you go through life. Being their friend has taught me a lot about how to be the best supportive system. “
Shannon said in her experience, a young person’s environment can determine how susceptible they are to youth violence.
“A lot of people are forced to live in situations where they have to take care of their family, where they have to be the adult that they were never taught to be. And I think that that really contributes to a cycle of violence, because when it's done to you, it can also be done by you,” Shannon said.
But Kingston said the federal funding that helps them do this work is going away.
“We've had funding through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, actually, since 2011, so for the past 15 years, we've had about $1.2 million a year to fund both implementation and evaluation. So that allows the university to be a support to the community, to use these resources to invest in the community,” Kingston said. “As many people know, the CDC funding, actually, the whole Division of Youth Violence Prevention, is pretty much gone now. As of April 1, 2025, that division was decimated. We still have our final year of funding. However, our implementation work, which is the work that's happening in the community, is ending very, very soon.”
Now, Kingston said, researchers and program organizers hope to raise a million dollars a year through donations to keep the programs running.
To learn more about this study and other youth violence prevention solutions, watch Real Talk with Micah Smith here.