ONE Lexington

Quarterly Community Forums – During ONE Lexington’s forums, we listen to the needs, concerns and feedback from the communities we serve. These spaces create a place for transparency between neighborhoods and the city agencies who are serving them. Upcoming forums to be announced. 

Let neighborhoods lead – Empower and encourage neighborhood residents to lead community efforts within that specific neighborhood. Long-standing, generational residents have lived experience and a unique connection to the place they live. City agencies should follow the lead of those residents when creating programming and providing services.

Mass media – You may have seen ONE Lexington talked about on the news or heard us on the radio. You can follow us on Facebook to see our latest outreach efforts.

The It Takes A Village student mentoring program is a weekly, youth summer mentoring program designed to provide educational and workforce preparation opportunities coupled with recreational activities, for Lexington youth ages 12 – 17.

Several community partners collaborate in engaging under-served youth with emotional and social skill-building workshops and fun activities where participants can bond with each other in a safe space. The workshops are led by various community partners and regional college/career trade institutions.

Trauma-informed practices guide our programs and initiatives by recognizing that trauma informs each individual’s life and behavior. Young Black men and boys experience trauma at higher levels than other groups of Americans. Studies show that trauma has health effects long into adulthood. Unaddressed trauma is both a cause and consequence of exposure to crime and violence.

Providing positive alternatives during the summer months can be a preventative measure addressing youth violence. Showing youth that life can be more than their current circumstance is a key component towards young people investing in their own futures.

We have transitioned this mentoring program into four in-school mentoring programs. Students interested in participating can email Devine Carama. 

Current in-school mentoring program schedule

• Frederick Douglass High School | Mondays | 8:30 – 9:25 a.m.
• Bryan Station High School | Mondays | 9:55 – 10:27 a.m.
• Winburn Middle School | Monday | 1:17 – 2:07 p.m. and 2:11 – 3:01 p.m.
• Southern Middle School | Tuesdays | 9:05 – 9:35 a.m.
• Dunbar High School | Tuesdays | 10:30 – 11 a.m.
• Henry Clay High School | Tuesdays | 11:25 – 11:50 a.m.
• Lexington Traditional Magnet School | Wednesdays | 11:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.

Join us as we walk through East End neighborhoods providing a presence to deter criminal activity. Our walking group has no enforcement capabilities, but we do connect residents with community resources including weekly food shares from Black Soil, Food Chain and the YMCA.

We use evidence-based intervention by occupying places where violence frequently occurs with positive community-based programming. The group assists in safely getting students to and from school. It also works with schools to address problems between students that may have started in school and spill out into the neighborhood.

N.E.W. meets every Wednesday at 6 p.m. for evening walks and food delivery. And every Wednesday and Friday at 4 p.m. for Lexington Traditional Magnet School after-school walks. Interested in joining our walks? Email Devine Carama. 

ONE Lexington is committed to reducing violence in Lexington by focusing on the systemic root causes of neighborhood violence. We believe in community-based programming that will help those most susceptible to the cycle of violence.

We’re working with Cities United on forming a long-term plan that focuses on changing policies that create barriers in under-served communities, improving food access, limiting economic disparities, improving mental health and more. Cities United isn’t a one-size-fits-all model, but creates a plan that fits the needs of Lexington and its residents.

Lexington’s version of HIVIP is Safety Net and involves partnerships of medical staff and appropriate community agencies in providing services for victims of violent crime through safety planning, services and trauma-informed care.

The University of Kentucky trauma unit works with an in-house social worker to identify gunshot victims and families of victims who may need wrap-around services and support. ONE Lexington, in partnership with UK and other agencies, has provided help to victims and their families with bill payment, mental health resources, mentoring for juveniles in the home and more. Supporting victims is one of the most important parts of violence prevention and intervention.

The violence intervention work group meets weekly, as needed, to discuss acts of gun violence in Lexington from the previous week. This meeting streamlines efforts between public safety, the prosecutor’s office, juvenile court, Fayette County Public Schools, victim advocacy agencies and more to provide wrap-around services for gunshot victims and their families.

One Lexington does not have enforcement capabilities. Visit the Lexington Police Department and the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office to see the work they are doing to keep neighborhoods safe.

Juvenile Treatment Court, a collaboration with Fayette County Public Schools and Fayette County District Court, is a voluntary program for juveniles in the court system. It provides a combination of case management provided by ONE Lexington, judicial oversight and mental health services to help set the youths up for success.