Youth Violence Intervention Program

Reaching Youth Beyond the System 

The Youth Violence Intervention Program (YVIP) is an innovative mentorship and intervention program within the Albuquerque Community Safety Department (ACS) designed to reduce youth violence—particularly gun violence—by supporting youth who are disconnected from traditional systems. Developed to address a critical gap, YVIP helps young people and their families navigate complex systems of care and provides stability, guidance, and support for those who often have nowhere else to turn.

YVIP supports youth who have been overlooked or face barriers to safety, stability, and opportunity. This includes youth: not in school, without stable housing, struggling with substance use, or involved in the justice system, including those on probation or recently released from juvenile detention. YVIP steps in at a critical moment to reduce violence and help youth reconnect to support systems.

Support When It Matters Most

YVIP Intervention Specialists serve as trusted mentors who provide individualized support and wraparound services to youth facing serious challenges in the community. Working closely with young people, their families, and guardians, they take time to understand each youth’s unique circumstances, connect them to needed resources, and help remove barriers to success. Through strong partnerships with community organizations and public safety departments, and a focus on trust-based relationships, YVIP supports youth in stabilizing their overall well-being and moving toward safer, healthier outcomes.

Mentors provide consistent, compassionate support through regular check-ins with youth to build trust, offer guidance, and help them navigate complex systems such as the justice, education, and health systems. These ongoing connections create space to address challenges, celebrate progress, plan next steps, and empower youth to make healthy life choices. Intervention Specialists also maintain close communication with families to ensure support remains coordinated and consistent.

Our approach

Like SBVIP, Youth VIP provides coordinated wraparound services designed to strengthen youth and families, reduce risk, and promote long-term stability. Using a whole-person, whole-family approach, YVIP connects participants to individualized supports that improve safety, increase engagement in positive systems, and help families achieve stability and interrupts cycles of violence.  

Wrap around services include:

• One-on-one mentorship and goal setting
• Connection to educational supports including GED, college, and trade programs
• Safety planning and crisis stabilization support
• Life skills training
• Referrals to counseling and therapy
• Mediation and conflict resolution
• Legal system navigation
• Case management
• Housing support
• Food security
• Youth justice system guidance and navigation
• Job readiness and employment support
• Assistance with benefit applications:
  • Medicaid
  • SNAP/EBT
  • TANF
  • SSI and SSDI
  • LIHEAP: Utility assistance

Building Stronger Futures

YVIP supports youth facing serious risk factors—whether from community violence, instability at home, or negative peer influences. By combining public health and public safety approaches, the program addresses the root causes of youth violence and helps young people navigate complex systems such as justice, education, and health.

The creation of YVIP revealed a critical disconnect between the systems meant to support youth and families—especially those involved in the justice system. The program fills this gap by coordinating these systems to work together more effectively for youth who don’t conform to traditional norms. Through this coordinated trauma-informed care, YVIP guides youth and families to access essential supports, helping young people move toward safer, healthier paths while reducing the stigma often associated with youth who have received a negative reputation. 

The program supports youth in building connections and becoming active, valued members of their community.

Need Support?

If you or someone you know could benefit from this program, we’re here to help.

Call: 505-768-4818

Email: [email protected]