Youth Advocate Programs Launches New Intervention Model and YAP Global Leadership Institute

Youth Advocate Programs (YAP), Inc., a nonprofit operating in 32 states and Washington, D.C., announced today two major initiatives aimed at keeping some of the highest-risk youth out of incarceration and other residential facilities, and scaling proven interventions globally. The organization is launching YAP Pursuing Excellence®, which adds cognitive behavioral therapy to its YAPWrap® comprehensive community-based youth and family services model. The organization will also unveil the YAP Global Leadership Institute (GLI) to train practitioners and partners in delivering evidence-based youth services in their communities.

A Model with Measurable Outcomes

Both expansions build on YAP’s four signature program areas — Youth and Family Empowerment, Bringing Systems Change, Investing in Economic Mobility, and Global Capacity Building. These initiatives are anchored by the 50-year-old YAPWrap® model, recognized by the National Institute of Justice and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention as a promising community-based individual and family wraparound program. John Jay College of Criminal Justice research found 86% of YAP youth justice participants remain arrest-free, and nearly 90% still lived in their communities six to 12 months after completing the program, with fewer than 5% in secure placement.

“We’re working to enhance donor funding to fuel the expansion of YAP Pursuing Excellence®, our innovative approach to improving outcomes for system-involved and other young people in trouble or crisis,” says Gary Ivory, president and CEO of Youth Advocate Programs, which adheres to a no-reject, no-eject approach to referrals from youth justice, child welfare, and other system partners.

Expanding reach and advocacy

GLI details are expected in the coming months. The institute will provide coaching, training, and technical assistance to practitioners in the U.S. and abroad. In 2025, YAP also launched YAP® Alumni Ambassadors, giving former participants a forum to share their outcome stories and testify before city councils, state legislators, and Congress. Part of its Bringing Systems Change efforts, the national nonprofit’s work has contributed to reducing violence rates in Baltimore, Charlotte, and other cities.

“We’re aligning all our functions with an eye on ensuring that through new and expanded government, philanthropic, corporate, community and other partnerships, more young people and families will benefit from our services,” Ivory says. “These alliances, bolstered by sustainable donor support, will ensure that our staff and service models will continue to bring positive change for individuals, families, and neighborhoods in American and global communities.”

Corporations and individuals can support YAP through donations or workforce development partnerships. Visit www.YAPInc.org to learn more.