Elev8 Baltimore is partnering with 20 city schools this year to offer after-school programming to over 650 students in an effort to keep youth crime on its decade-long decline.

The state’s department of juvenile services released a report in September that found youth crime to be rising over the past two years – but remaining lower than levels ten years ago, and lower than adult crime rates.

Alexandria Warrick Adams, executive director of Elev8 Baltimore, says the nonprofit’s goal is to keep youth in school buildings and out of danger by offering enrichment programs that students want.

“When young people don't have opportunities that are engaging, they're going to vote with their feet, and they're going to be on the street,” she said.

Each school site begins the after-school program with dinner, followed by academic support and enrichment activities. But those activities vary from school to school.

“It's not just a cookie cutter opportunity that we bring into a school,” Warrick Adams said. “We bring a framework, and then based on the school's needs and opportunities that are in this community, we are able to customize.”

Students at Arundel Elementary School, for example, choose between soccer, dance and art. But at Youth Opportunity School, an alternative high school, Elev8 has brought in workshops on drone technology and cooking.

Federico Adams, principal at Youth Opportunity school, has been working with Elev8 since its inception in 2009. His school was the first alternative high school to become an Elev8 partner.

“It's really been a godsend for us,” Adams said. “Because the resources that I get by being part of their network allow us to do things that otherwise would be pretty much virtually impossible to do.”

Students at Youth Opportunity School often propose the programs they want to see, Adams said. This year, they started a student government and hosted a prom with help from their Elev8 school coordinator.

“They come to us around things that they want to do and things they want to learn to use their voice to advocate for,” Adams said. “The feedback I get from the students is, ‘Hey, I didn't think I would get a chance to do that in an alternative school.’”

Warrick Adams said participation does decrease as students get older.

“Younger kids participate at a higher rate primarily because parents need after-school programs for child care,” she said. “That tends to shift a little bit in middle school because they've now had the opportunity to decide for themselves whether or not they want to be in an-after school program.”

High school students often have competing interests, like sports and jobs. That’s why Elev8 gives stipends to students at Youth Opportunity School.

“That monetary obstacle kind of went away, and if it didn't go away, it dissipated,” Adams said.

This improved attendance at the school significantly, Adams added. When he started as principal seven years ago, the attendance rate hovered at 30%. Now, it’s close to 80%, he said.

Warrick Adams says Elev8’s success is seen in retention rates and academic achievement. But that success is “slow-coming,” she said.

“It took us decades to get into this space that we're here in Baltimore, and one after school program a young person participates in even over multiple years isn't the magic solution,” she said.

The nonprofit is limited in its ties to school buildings, which stops programs at 7:30 p.m. – or earlier, depending on location. The city lacks sufficient recreational spaces, Warrick Adams said.

Providing transportation home from after-school programs is also a barrier, Warrick Adams said.

“The goal would be to provide transportation home for all of our young people,” she said. “That's an expensive endeavor. And even if we had abundant resources to provide daily transportation for families in need, the resource itself, bus drivers, there's a shortage in Maryland.”

Finding creative solutions to those challenges is a main goal for Elev8 going forward, Warrick Adams said. So is growing a workforce from within student participants.

“Similar to a city schools strategy around growing the teacher pipeline, what is the strategy around growing this youth development pipeline?” she said. “How are we creating workforce opportunities for young people that may be interested in taking my job, taking my team's job?”

Elev8 Baltimore already prioritizes local hires, including young people who can be role models, like college students.

The “magic” of Elev8 Baltimore is “really about being hyper local, and creating opportunities that are working to transition power” to students and families, Warrick Adams said. “Because they are experts in their lived experience.”

This story is published in partnership with Maryland Public Television as part of the Baltimore News Collaborative, a project exploring the challenges and successes experienced by young people in Baltimore. The collaborative is supported by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. News members of the collaborative retain full editorial control.