The mayor of Rochester announces a juvenile mental health program to assist keep children out of trouble

Rochester, New York – Rochester Mayor Malik Evans is attempting to address the issue in the wake of a recent spate of crimes that have allegedly been committed by youths in the neighborhood.

To gather information that would keep local youngsters out of trouble, the Mayor’s Youngsters Advisory Council, commonly known as Youth Voice One Vision (YVOV), launched a youth mental health survey on Monday.

Investing in oneself is one of the most important lessons imparted.

This is happening at the same time as several automobile thefts in the city and a reckless driving event at Franklin High School last Thursday—all of which featured allegedly underage victims—are raising some eyebrows in Rochester. According to Evans, the core of the matter is resolving mental health issues.

“There is a direct relationship between young people and the cars you may see being stolen — the violence you may see and mental health,” he explained.

Evans admitted that the city has lately spoken with a few young people who had stolen cars. They claim the mayor tried to give them something to do since they were bored and that’s why they did it.

“Our goal is that we fill up, with so many opportunities for these young people to do, that they are not bored,” Evans said.

The goal of YVOV is to reduce teen aggression. The group emphasizes that the vast majority of the local youth are nice.

However, YVOV representative Sarah Adams claims it’s upsetting to watch otherwise decent people turn to criminality.

“All of these things exist in us all, and it angers me so much that this gets wasted because of the urge to get that adrenaline rush or sense of pride from making decisions that we know aren’t going to benefit us,” Adams said.

To help them get back on track, YVOV members have sought out to their peers.

“I try to talk about points that I know that would encourage them to join, and then I let them figure out the rest themselves,” said Aamir Jeffries, a YVOV member.

Isaiah Santiago, the newest and youngest member of the Rochester City School Board, believes that the youth of today want mental health to be emphasized above all else.

“Our mental health is an important thing,” Santiago said. “It’s something our young people have been asking for services for and been crying out for help for. So it’s important for us to get to a place where we are able to invest in ourselves, become emotionally intelligent, be able to understand who we are and who or personality is and who we will become.”

Evans thinks that the key to ensuring that children in Rochester remain out of trouble is providing them with extracurricular activities and organizations like YVOV.