OYP Initiative in New Rochelle City Court Seeks Community Mentors

In October 2020, Judge Rice launched Opportunity Youth Part (OYP), a community-centric initiative that matches disconnected justice-involved emerging adults, ages 16-24, to community organizations that provide workforce trainings, job placement, GED classes, college access, assistance with substance abuse and behavioral health, and local, caring Mentors. One of OYP’s most successful components is its Mentoring outreach.

“We have worked with some truly extraordinary OYP Mentors,” notes Colleen Gardephe, Coordinator of the OYP initiative. “Their commitment to supporting their Mentees is incomparable: their dedication and support play a key role in transforming a challenging time in the life of a young adult into one that puts them on a more fulfilling and successful life path.”

OYP has matched more than 45 participants to high-level, caring Mentors. To date, the initiative has worked with more than 200 young participants.

In December 2022, OYP hired a new Mentor Coordinator, Stephanie Dotel, Director of Program Initiatives at Choice of NY. “Stephanie is hitting the ground running,” notes Gardephe. “Stephanie previously worked as an OYP case manager since the initiative’s inception so she knows the positive impact a caring Mentor can have on a justice-involved Emerging Adult.”

Choice of NY, which was selected to be Westchester’s Pre-Trial Services Provider, is playing a key role in supporting OYP’s participants by connecting them to affordable housing, mental health and substance abuse treatment, job readiness programs, and access to vital benefits like food stamps and Medicaid.

Recently, Judge Rice and Dotel gave a local presentation on OYP’s Mentoring program to congregants at New York Covenant Church and signed up 17 new OYP mentors on the spot and interest from two others. “People in New Rochelle want to give back to their community, and they see that serving as a Mentor to a justice-involved youth can be both rewarding and impactful,” notes Dotel.

In May 2021, the New Rochelle City Council voted unanimously to allocate $70,000 in funding to expand OYP’s reach and impact. This ongoing funding supports a part-time Mentor Coordinator as well as a part-time After-Care Case Manager.

"Mentors have been the key to OYP's great success. Through this innovative partnership, justice-involved young people have formed meaningful connections with many of our community's most talented and accomplished residents, and, in so doing, received professional and personal guidance of enormous value,” notes Mayor Noam Bramson. “Because of OYP, program participants grow dramatically in their confidence, abilities, and life prospects, while our city as a whole becomes safer and more just."

Recent scientific studies confirm that the brain does not fully develop until a person is 25 and that young adults are often impulsive and incapable of foreseeing the consequences of their actions. OYP participation reflects the harsh reality of this “maturity gap” and the racial and gender divide in Emerging Adult arrests and convictions nationally and throughout New York State. Of the more than 200 participants assigned to OYP, more than 80% of them are boys and young men of color.

Bruce Jackson became an OYP Mentor in December of 2021. He was matched with a participant who was later named the MVP All Star at OYP’s Second Anniversary celebration in November of 2022. “In some areas, Joshua has come a long way; in others, he didn't have to change at all -- he just needed to believe that he was in a safe situation to allow his best personality to shine through,” says Jackson. “I believe the OYP program has done that, and I feel privileged to be a part of it.”

To increase the number of caring Mentors available to OYP participants, the initiative is issuing a call for community Mentors. To become an OYP Mentor, you must be 25+; have not had any involvement with the justice system in the past three years; can commit to a Mentorship for a minimum of one year; and demonstrate maturity, positive behavior, and cultural competence.

Those interested in becoming a Mentor to an OYP participant can submit an application form which can be found here.

OYP Mentor applicants will require references, a background check, and personal interview. Please see the attached Mentor Handbook and a recent Info-graphic about OYP.

“We are very proud of the opportunity to work with OYP in a Mentoring capacity.” notes Choice of NY’s CEO, Guy Fessenden. “This is a brilliant program that gives young people a different and positive perspective and helps them to see broader options for themselves. OYP gives people a second chance to make different choices about the direction of their lives. We are very grateful to be a part of this innovative and effective program.”

Choice’s COO, Lynn Kolb, adds, “Choice of NY is excited and honored for the opportunity to oversee the Mentoring program for OYP and the City of New Rochelle. We understand that this is a key element to the success of all the Emerging Adults and look forward to working hard to support this important initiative.”

In partnership with Deputy Chief Administrative Judge Edwina G. Mendelson and the Office for Justice Initiatives, OYP oversees a weekly calendar that includes one hour of conferencing with service providers, lawyers and mentors and a one-hour follow-up calendar with the young participants and their attorneys. OYP participants who comply with their Wellness Plans often receive a better case outcome and frequently leave the program without a criminal record. OYP, the first Emerging Adult Justice initiative in the Hudson Valley, is becoming a model for other communities to replicate.

About Choice of New York

Choice of New York is an innovative social services organization that assists consumers of mental health services in receiving the vital benefits to which they are entitled. The services that this nonprofit offers are free and are provided with compassion. Choice of New York specializes in complete case management, homeless outreach, and criminal justice reentry and rehabilitative services. To learn more about the provided services and Choice of New York’s mission, visit choiceofny.org.