FAST TRACK PROJECT

In 1990, the National Institute of Mental Health funded scientists from four US universities to work collaboratively to translate scientific knowledge into a comprehensive program to reduce serious violence by intervening to support children and families at risk beginning at school entry. This program, known as Fast Track, was evaluated through a randomized controlled trial that included 891 children from 28 neighborhoods in four US communities (three urban and one rural). With the current rise in violent crime, it is timely to bring to public attention the findings of the Fast Track Project, which attempted to alter the pathway known as the "school to prison pipeline." The findings have shown that a series of multi-level interventions that support families, schools, and children beginning at age 5 can succeed in reducing convictions for violent crime through age 25, as well as show numerous other beneficial outcomes... Fast Track provided interventions to children, families, and..