U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Studies show that youths disconnected from school and jobs are more likely to engage in crime, become incarcerated and rely on public systems for support, the GAO notes. In order to successfully serve such disenfranchised youth, local programs need an efficient staff, hands-on learning opportunities for participants and the resources to address youths’ multiple needs with counseling, health care, child care, and food and housing assistance, the study concludes. GAO recommends increasing the current one-year time frame in which organizations must meet performance goals for hard-to-employ youth in order to secure federal funding. Free, 64 pages. (202) 512-6000, http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d08313.pdf.
