An introduction by 
About the JPA
Mission
The Mission of the Youth Ventures Joint Powers Authority (JPA) is to advocate for children, youth and families in Alameda County with a special emphasis on vulnerable populations. The JPA operates in accordance with core principles intended to support and implement this mission. These core principles include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Creation and institutionalization of inter-agency and intra-agency support systems and strategies;
- Data-driven, collaborative decision-making;
- Protection of individual privacy and confidentiality;
- Resource development, expansion, leveraging and pooling;
- Mutual responsibility for meaningful outcomes;
- Joint credit for success; and
- Promotion of best practices.
WHY WE EXIST
The needs of disadvantaged youth living in urban areas throughout California are urgent and complex. These youth and their families do not fall within any one jurisdiction and no one jurisdiction can meet all of their needs. Too often public funding is not strategically leveraged to maximize outcomes for children, youth and their families. This is especially relevant in urban areas like Oakland and San Lorenzo in Alameda County, where a variety of local governmental institutions, counties, cities, school districts and courts are responsible for a wide range of programming and support services for children and their families.
WHERE WE WORK
We work with the most disadvantaged communities in Alameda County. The communities are home to families where 64% of children live in poverty and live with burdens they are not meant to bear. Oakland is one of these communities, where the unemployment rate is 17.7% and the high school graduation rate is less than 50%. In these communities are found the highest levels of health disparities including the highest rates of hospitalization for asthma, teen births, and hospitalization for assault among youth. Students in these communities rank among the lowest on academic tests and have high rates of school suspension, drop-outs and truancy. It is these youth whom we serve.
To address these issues, over the last decade the member organizations of the Youth Ventures Joint Powers Authority-Alameda County, Oakland Unified School District (OUSD), the City of Oakland and San Lorenzo Unified School District-have focused on building collaborative partnerships to leverage resources, eliminate duplication and deliver accessible services to the most disadvantaged and vulnerable populations.
HOW WE STARTED
Initially in 1998, the collaboration was sparked as part of a national effort from the Robert Wood Johnson's ten year Urban Health Initiative. The initiative sought to make system wide changes to sustain improvements in the overall health of children living in urban areas. In Oakland, California, this collaboration took shape in the form of Safe Passages, and its work focused on alleviating the effects of violence on children and youth ages birth to early adulthood. Three major public entities developed and implemented far reaching systems change efforts during this period: The City of Oakland, the County of Alameda and the Oakland Unified School District. Safe Passages Board was a configuration of elected officials including county board of supervisors, city council members, and school board trustees, as well as high level administrative directors, including the chief of police, chief of probation, director of social services, and director of health care services, among others. In addition, the district attorney and juvenile court judges participated in the development and implementation of cross jurisdictional initiatives to create alternatives to incarceration and reduce recidivism among repeat youth offenders.
Today, the Safe Passages collaboration embodies two entities working cohesively to advocate for children, youth, and families. The two entities are:
- Safe Passages, 501(c)(3)
- Youth Ventures Joint Powers Authority
(governmental entity)
Development of the JPA
Towards the end of the investment in the Urban Health Initiative by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2004, Safe Passages began to investigate organizational structures that would best sustain the decade of gains achieved by the intergovernmental collaborative. Safe Passages staff presented the following organizational structures to the Board as models for consideration:
- Unincorporated Association Under a Fiscal Agent
- University Affiliate
- Incorporate as Independent 501(c)(3) Nonprofit
- Chatham Savannah Youth Futures Authority Model
- Joint Powers Authority
Given the report, the Board requested that staff focus on two governmental structures: Joint Powers Authority and State Legislated Special Authority. The process undertaken to investigate these two primary methods to create independent governmental entities included approximately 40 interviews, consultation with experts and other agency authorities, detailed research, and legislative analysis. Both the Joint Powers Authority and the State Legislated Special Authority (Special Authority) models were analyzed to determine compatibility with adopted core principles and functions of the proposed entity. Additional research was conducted to identify existing JPAs and Special Authorities created to provide services for children, youth, and families. Investigation into specific organizations was conducted to determine the organizational and voting structures, budget information, and the Brown Act requirements.
In July 2006, the Board of Safe Passages adopted a draft Joint Powers Authority Agreement to institutionalize the decade long partnership. In addition, the board also directed staff to create a non-profit, 501(c)(3) arm for the partnership in order to increase flexibility and capacity for development and organizational options. The JPA Agreement was then forwarded to the governing bodies of the three chartering members: County of Alameda, City of Oakland and Oakland Unified School District. The Oakland City County adopted the Agreement via Resolution on July 25, 2006. Similarly, the Board of Supervisors for the County of Alameda adopted the Agreement via Resolution on September 26, 2006. Finally, the Oakland Unified School District, adopted the JPA Agreement on December 13, 2006.
The following year in March 2007, the San Lorenzo Unified School District requested admission in the JPA. The Youth Ventures Joint Powers Authority Board of Trustees granted San Lorenzo Unified School District admission at their September 2007 meeting.
The Youth Ventures JPA remains open to all public systems in Alameda County seeking to enter into this multi-governmental partnership with the intent of furthering their jurisdictions' commitment to integrated services for vulnerable populations. Our partners and service providers include the governing body, funders, partners and community providers.
Partners and Service Providers
Governing Body – Funders - Partners – Community Providers