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Active Learner provides education advocacy and placement assistance, job readiness training, and on-site academic enrichment classes for all skill levels.

The Active Learner programs incorporate students' interests and hone in on both their areas of strength and subjects in which they need additional support. By emphasizing the connection between experiential and classroom learning, we aim to convince young people with limited reading skills, few positive role models, and a belief that school is of no use that, in fact, learning is exciting and important - and something at which they can succeed. Through a growing focus on GED preparation and testing, we have also given some of our oldest students the opportunity to pursue tangible educational goals.

Recently, Active Learner has undertaken new initiatives that are responsive to each participants' unique educational needs. These include:

Passport to the Future. In partnership with the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CASES' Passport to the Future Program provides male CEP participants with culturally informed mentoring services and a youth development based treatment intervention curriculum. Designed to foster healthy development and reduce recidivism, participants receive the support and skills thy neet to exit and avoid further justice system involvement.

Passport to the Future serves male youth between the ages of 16 and 19 at the time of offense and are held once a week at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. During the first week of the program, each participant is introduced to and paired up with a mentor. Mentors are John Jay College Psychology or Criminal Justice graduate students.

The Passport to the Furture curriculum includes:

• Self Knowledge and Awareness- designed to help participants in exploring and developing self-identity, self-knowledge and self-awareness.
  
• History- assists participants in understanding inter and intra ethnic/racial history, role models, geo-political issues within individual ethnic/racial groups, and influential leaders throughout various cultures.
  
• Relationships- desgined to assist participants in developing healthy relationships between family members, peers, and the community.
  
• Skill Development- assists participants in developing skills in four broad areas: Anger Management and Conflict Resolution, Language Usage and Communication Skills, Career Development, Economic Empowerment and Substance Use/Abuse.
  
• Leadership- helps participants develop leadership qualities that will assist them in future endeavors.
  
• Community Service and Activities- motivates participants to give back to their community. Through collaborative relationships with various departments and colleges within John Jay College of Criminal Justice; participants have the opportunity to engage in various on and off campus activities with their mentors.
  
• Follow-up and Transition- to help with continued success and further assistance with additional career and educational opportunities, youth are monitored for a number of months upon successful completion of the program.
  

Homework Help. To bridge the participant's education in school to their experience at CEP, Active Learner provides homework assistance after-school to all participants. Homework Help is mandatory for all CEP Family Court participants. Each session is tailored to the specific academic needs of the participant, includes either homework review or tutoring.

Education Liasion Services. An on-site educational liaison links participants, the schools they attend, and CASES' Active Learner to ensure that the participant is enrolled and actively attending school. By meeting with individual teachers, guidance counselors and school officials, the liaison improves each participant's engagement in and performance at school and at CASES. The liaison works in schools located in Brooklyn and the Bronx to complement the operation and advocacy efforts that provide services to participants who reside in Manhattan.

Employment Skills Workshop. This program is designed to meet the needs of our participants who face significant barriers to finding and retaining employment because of low or no literacy skills. The workshop combines art therapy with job skills training to better prepare participants for the challenges they face at school and in the workplace.