Orlando, FL: On Monday, January 14, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and the City Council are set to take action to break the cycles that breed crime in our community.

The Mayor and Council will vote to authorize two new positions aimed at reducing youth involvement in gangs and violent crime.

“These positions are focused exclusively on counteracting the culture that causes our youth to engage in illegal activity,” said Mayor Dyer. “Extending education and opportunity to this most vulnerable part of our population will have long-term benefits in our effort to reduce crime.”

The new positions will work with young people in middle school and high school. The aim is to assist at-risk youth by connecting them with educational and social services. The jobs will also focus on getting young people who have dropped out to re-enter public school or find alternative educational opportunities or link these young people with jobs and job training resources.

The positions, one in the Orlando Police Department and one in the City’s Department of Families, Parks and Recreation, will be funded in partnership with Orange County Public Schools through a federal grand by the United States Department of Labor.

The grant for the City position is for $60, 840 a year for two years. The Grant for OPD is for $125,000 a year for the first year of the grant and $131,250 for the second year of the grant.