U-turn is a South Florida-based training firm that provides comprehensive services to agencies working with youth, with the objective of enhancing youth service delivery.  Our inclusive approach integrates real-life issues involving youth stories and strategic resolutions within systems and law enforcement. This is achieved through a four-pillar comprehensive method that includes conferences and summits, systems training, community engagement, and our signature events, Teen Chat and U-Turn’s Turning Point. U-turn provides best practices to navigate complex processes related to mitigating gun violence, disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline, and improving youth-police relations.

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It is essential for professionals working with youth to understand the factors contributing to the challenges faced by young people. U-turn strives to offer insights and tools to identify warning signs and address them effectively. Our resources include the book, The Backstory of a New Reality: Jaw Dropping Unmasking of Urban Youth Violence, and its supplemental workbook by Dr. Shirley Plantin. This set delivers practical knowledge about various factors such as parental influence, culture, mental health, socio-economic status, social media, and drugs that impact youth behavior.

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Clients are educated on recognizing underlying factors (Backstories) and their effect on current emergencies, especially those affecting youth. Given the escalating school-to-prison pipeline, growing mistrust of law enforcement, and the national crisis of youth gun violence, it is imperative to invest in and hold accountable our most valuable resource: human capital. A strategic reset is required.

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Youth Pillar:

Our youth are in a state of emergency, and it is imperative that youth advocates know and understand the reasons why so many young people are in a tailspin. U-turn will highlight the backstories and the tools needed to not only identify the red flags but to know how to proceed to address them. The tools offered as a basis for change are the book, The Backstory of a New Reality: Jaw Dropping Unmasking of Urban Youth Violence, and the supplemental workbook written by Dr. Shirley Plantin, the firm’s Chief Executive Consultant, This set contains a wealth of down to earth knowledge about the different components that are working together (parents, culture, mental health, socio-economic status ,social media, etc.) driving young people to commit acts of violence.

 

Systems Pillar:

U-turn facilitates trainings and consultancy services for Systems and partners that impact community. Clientsengage in a deep dive about the necessity of going beyond diversity while considering the importance of acknowledging one’s backstories, biases and the need for racial-social equity and inclusion; and how the lack of these factors contribute to our current state of emergency (particularly with our youth).

As a result of long-standing social justice issues, the firm’s targeted clientele are stakeholders who work with and within communities, in hopes of mitigating systemic injustices, improving diversity, and working towards inclusion of all people.  To effectively diminish the occurrence of future tragedies on scales both small and large, we must invest in and hold accountable our most precious asset: human capital, a Re-set is Needed.

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OUR OBJECTIVES

• Educate and raise awareness about the implications of the increasing school-to-prison pipeline, the growing mistrust of law enforcement, and the national crisis of youth gun violence on our youth and the community at large. 

• Advocate for and amplify the voices of youth and their backstories.

• Assist youth-serving agencies in Elevating the quality of services provided to vulnerable youth.

• Empower service providers to respect the diversity of the communities' lived experiences and to serve with empathy.

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U-turn’s 7 Year Impact

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• 1,349 U-turn’s Signature Events: The Turning Point

• 1986 Systems Trainings: Educators & Academia, Law Enforcement, Health & Wellness & Non-profit Agencies

• 2,339 Summits & Conferences

• 5,660 U-turn’s Signature Events: Teen Chats

• 25,817 Community Engagement 

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