Competitive CalVIP award brings safe spaces, mental health support, and summer programming to Adelanto youth
ADELANTO, CA – MHM & Associates Enterprises, a women-owned business, has secured a $2
million California Violence Intervention and Prevention (CalVIP) Cohort 5 grant for the City of Adelanto through the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC). The award is bringing a new wave of youth violence prevention resources to Adelanto, and the local organizations closest to the community are ready to get to work.
The City of Adelanto’s award was one of only 42 made statewide. More than 390 applicants from
across California competed for CalVIP Cohort 5 funding, requesting over $1.1 billion, and MHM & Associates led the effort to bring a share of that funding home to Adelanto.
The award supports the RISE Adelanto initiative, a multi-year effort to reduce violence and expand opportunity for young people across the city. Community-based organizations that have served Adelanto families for years say the funding gives them the resources to reach more youth, sooner.
Leading the charge are Molding Hearts and LifeBuilders, two organizations with deep roots in the High Desert.
Molding Hearts already operates a 78-bed transitional program, serves more than 70 seniors a day
through the Adelanto Senior Center, and provides thousands of meals daily to at-risk children, and will focus on reaching youth in the Victor Valley Unified School District. LifeBuilders, which provides programming for justice-impacted youth and adults, will lead engagement with local student athletes and coaches, including seasonal athletic drill days that connect young people to mentorship and
positive outlets. Both organizations are looking forward to bringing RISE Adelanto to their city, knowing
the youth they serve every day need safe spaces, mentorship, and a path forward.
RISE Adelanto is designed to strengthen both the city’s young people and its local business community. The initiative will serve youth ages 11 to 18 and foster youth ages 14 to 21, with a goal of reaching approximately 345 young people over the life of the grant. The initiative will establish five Community Safety Zones across the city, developed with the Victor Valley Unified School District and staffed by trained violence interrupters. Participants will have access to a youth wellness app connecting them to mental health resources, coaching, and licensed clinical support, and will be invited to R.E.D. (Resilient, Empowered, Directed) Camp, a six-week summer program focused on conflict prevention and community empowerment.
On the business side, RISE Adelanto will engage area businesses in growth and partnership opportunities while connecting them with young people through internships, mentorship, and youth-produced public service announcements, with outcomes tracked quarterly to build partnerships that last beyond the grant period. RISE Adelanto is supported by MHM & Associates Enterprises and Source Global Imagined (SGI).
