13 Jan Dr. Janay Sander and Dr. Ruth Jefferson present initial study findings at national criminology conference

Ball State University faculty members Dr. Janay Sander (associate professor of educational psychology), and Dr. Ruth Jefferson (assistant professor of educational psychology) are working on a reading intervention study, called the Team 2 Project, at the Youth Opportunity Center.  Ball State University and the YOC, through a grant from the National Institute of Justice, have collaborated to test existing reading tools in hopes of recommending better methods for working with at-risk youth. The researchers, along with other members of the project team and staff from the YOC, presented preliminary findings at the American Society of Criminology conference in New Orleans, LA on November 17, 2016. The initial findings show dramatic improvements for youth in the study after 4 months.

“It’s a huge compliment to the YOC’s administrative team that they continually commit to and invest in their residents’ futures by collaborating with us on the Team 2 project,” said Dr. Sander. “It shows that they are truly committed to the quality of services they provide to their residents and are willing to invest in research designed to help at-risk youth locally as well as nationwide if what we expect is what we find,” she added.

For more information on the Team 2 project, contact Dr. Janay Sander at jsander@bsu.edu. To find out more about the YOC and how they help children and families, visit yocinc.org.