NYC would like to understand how access to programming supports participants on probation or community supervision.  

There are large concentrations of youth on probation throughout New York City (NYC). To address this challenge, the New York City Department of Probation and the Young Men's Initiative have implemented the Neighborhood Opportunity Network (NeON) Works program. NeON is a citywide network of community-based centers in seven NYC neighborhoods where large concentrations of people on probation reside. NeON Works supports these communities by providing their youth and young adults with a tailored one-size-fits-one opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills, and experience needed for success in the workplace. 

The Mayor’s Office for Economic Opportunity seeks to fully understand the program's effectiveness and impact, to improve and expand probation-oriented programming in the city.

NORC is using mixed methods to assess NeON Works.

NORC is conducting a mixed-methods evaluation to examine what is and isn’t working well across NeON Works program sites. This includes examining the effectiveness and benefits of the program’s one-size-fits-one model and identifying areas of improvement. Our research team will visit NeON Works sites to interview program staff and conduct focus groups with participants. We will also administer program participant surveys and analyze administrative data.  

Key evaluation areas include:

• Understanding who the program is serving and to what extent
• Assessing how well the program is being executed according to its design
• Surveying the levels of participant involvement and satisfaction with the program
• Evaluating the effectiveness of program partnerships and internal collaborative efforts
• Identifying factors that hinder or support program success
• Measuring the tangible results and program impacts on participants