Target Population
Any youth between the ages of 7 and 17 years may participate in Prodigy. Prodigy is specifically designed to enhance skills that help youth avoid delinquent behaviors. This intervention can occur at three different levels: prevention, diversion, and intervention. “Prevention youth” are those youth in the community who have not been involved with the criminal system, but may be at risk of delinquent behaviors. The majority of youth participating in Prodigy are “prevention” or community youth who are self-referred from the local community and have not been processed through law enforcement.
“Diversion youth” are those who have been arrested as first-time, nonviolent offenders. Diversion youth have been “diverted” from adjudication, which means they have not been sent to court. Instead, the State’s Attorney has exercised the option to refer the offending youth to the Prodigy Cultural Arts Program. Once the State’s Attorney refers a youth to Prodigy, the youth has 90 days to complete the program.
“Intervention” youth have been adjudicated and sentenced to incarceration. As an alternative to incarceration, intervention youth may complete eight weeks of Prodigy. It is rare that Prodigy actually serves any youth classified as “intervention.” The vast majority of youth currently served by the program are “diversion” or “community/prevention” youth.
