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National Gang Center

Inform, equip, and train communities to prevent gang violence, reduce gang involvement, and suppress gang‐related crime
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Description

Who We Are 

The National Gang Center (NGC) is a project funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The NGC is an integral component of the Justice Department’s mission to provide innovative leadership in coordination with federal, state, local, and tribal justice systems to prevent and reduce crime. The NGC disseminates information, knowledge, and outcome‐driven practices that engage and empower those in local communities with chronic and emerging gang problems to create comprehensive solutions to prevent gang violence, reduce gang involvement, and suppress gang‐related crime.

Focus Areas

History of the National Gang Center

As a means to strengthen communities’ abilities to address youth gang involvement, OJJDP launched the National Youth Gang Center NYGC in 1995. In 2003, BJA launched the NGC to provide law enforcement with specialized training for countering street gang crime. In October 2009, the NYGC merged with the NGC. This unification signified a recognition that street gang activities transcend ages of the members and that a balanced, comprehensive approach is needed to reduce gang involvement and levels of gang crime. Consolidation of the centers has leveraged resources and resulted in a single, more efficient entity, responsive to the needs of criminal and juvenile justice professionals, law enforcement, youth‐and community‐serving practitioners, researchers, and the public.