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Our program of one-to-one youth mentoring has been shown to have a significant and positive impact on the lives of children. Recent studies and program evaluations show our success in strengthening youth’s ability to create a positive future.
Need: To improve academic performance in communities throughout Alaska. Over 3642 of Alaska’s children will drop out and not finish high school this year. These kids will earn at least $9000/yr LESS than their peers who do finish. That $9000 a year equals $32,778,000 in lost wages for Alaskans every year.
Outcome: Littles in our program are 52% less likely to skip class. They stay more engaged in class, do better in school and ultimately, graduate. Teachers in our school-based program report that our Littles have reduced unexcused absences.
Need: To reduce the rate of teen drinking in Alaska. Underage drinking costs the citizens of Alaska $317 million annually, inclusive of medical care, work loss, and pain and suffering . This is equivalent to $3,944 per year for each youth in the State. Based on these figures, per capita, Alaska is second among the fifty states for the cost of underage drinking.
Outcome: Littles are 27% less likely to use alcohol. As a result they are also less likely to engage in a whole variety of behaviors linked to alcohol use and abuse including drinking and driving.
Need: To reduce troubling substance abuse rates. 12650 of kids in Alaska aged 10-17 will use drugs this year. Societal cost of drug use is estimated to be approximately $12,000 per year per user. This adds up to a $151.8 million problem for Alaska
Outcome: Littles are 46% less likely to ever begin using drugs. Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteers have great impact in the area of alcohol and substance abuse prevention. For every 100 youth between ages 10 and 16 who start using drugs only 54 similar youth who are matched with a Big will start using drugs. Minority boys and girls were the most strongly influenced; they were 70 percent less likely than their peers to initiate drug use.
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