Susie Cambria, MSW

Public Policy Consulting

Why, oh, why are the Roving Leaders going away? (6/15/09)
So the new director of the Department of Parks and dcpsnews/newsrelease/News%20Release-%
Recreation allegedly plans to eliminate the Roving 20Status%20of%20DCPS%20after%203-weeks.pdf
Leaders program. This makes sense. Not. on October 29, 2008)

According to the recently released gang report on
gang and crew violence, “When allowed to work
consistent with the model, there is wide consensus
that Roving Leaders have a positive impact on the
lives of young people.” (A Blueprint for Action,
online at www.dccollaboratives.org, page 16)
The District has been home to the Roving Leaders
since 1954 when they were created to engage those
we now refer to as “disconnected youth”, those
young people who are least likely to be connected
with services and supports. The most effective Rov-
ing Leaders are legendary and revered for their abil-
ity to change lives. They do this by connecting
young people to mentoring, employment and train-
ing referrals, school and home visits, and one-on-
one meetings. Mostly, though, the RLs connect
with young people.
While the Roving leaders were successful in helping
DCPS achieve their immunization goals, deploying
them to meet other needs only dilutes the effec-
tiveness of the intervention, one that is predicated
on one-on-one relationships and being available
when needed. Their job is to connect with uncon-
nected youth to get them into services and off the
street where they are, presumably, engaging in less
than optimal behaviors.
Given the value of the program, demonstrated over
the years and more importantly life by life, isn’t
solving a management challenge better than elimi-
nating the program?

Over the years, Roving Lead-

ers roved less and served
other masters more. In Sep-
tember 2003, for instance,
Levon’s Story Although Levon earned his high school
diploma, he wasn't doing much with it. He was spending all his time
Roving Leaders contacted
at home or out playing ball. He needed to get his mind and hands
parents of students who
motivated to gain some additional training to make it into the world
were not immunized per
of meaningful work. A member of the D.C. Roving Leaders referred
school requirements. (DC
Levon to Covenant House Washington's Community Outreach Cen-
Public Schools, September
ter where he was directed by a Service Manager to participate in the
15, 2003, “District of Colum-
Artisans Woodworking Program. Now, with a newly discovered in-
bia Public Schools Making
terest in working with his hands and a talent for creative design,
Significant Progress in Hiring
Levon is focused on building a career in woodworking. Just what
of New Teachers and Immu-
sparked Levon's interest in wood craftsmanship? The answer to that
nizing Students: School Offi-
question can be discovered at the Artisans Woodshop. . . at 1235
cials Offer Positive Assess-
Kenilworth Avenue, NE. (Covenant House Washington, October 2,
ment of School Progress in
2003 at http://www.covenanthousedc.org/News&Views/
Third Week of Classes”,
PressReleaseDocs/2003/PRArtisansOctober2003.htm)
downloaded from
www.k12.dc.us/dcps/

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