City of Saint Paul, MN
09/01/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/01/2026 14:46
2026 ONS Contract Partners: Mid-Year Report
Our 2026 Contract Partners
- T.O.N.E. U.P.: Teaching Ourselves New Examples of Uplifting People is implementing a peer navigator pilot program to provide individualized support, mentorship, connection to community resources, and more. Learn more at toneup.org.
- JK Movement: The JKM PIVOT program provides services to justice-involved, or at-risk of involvement, youth through self-empowerment and leadership, career pathway corridor services, and community engagement. Learn more at thejkm.org.
- Face to Face: The Youth Justice Program provides support to youth touched by the criminal legal system including services of case management, mentorship, advocacy, mental health and wraparound support. Learn more at face2face.org.
- 180 Degrees: The Gateway to Drug Abuse Education and Prevention program creates relevant substance abuse prevention curriculum to be used to educate and train their shelter and outreach services staff, as well as ONS and contracted partner staff. Learn more at 180degrees.org.
Impact Indicators
- 296 people served by these ONS contract partners so far
- 31 participants in 17 restorative-justice circles
- 17 people reached before release from Ramsey County Correctional Facility (often called the "workhouse")
Partner Testimonials
- How One Young Person Found Healing with 180 Degrees: Jessie arrived at Brittany's Place after what she thought was a friendship turned to abuse and exploitation. During her trafficking, she turned to substance abuse to cope with the traumatic events. "I was trying to find something new to focus on besides all the stuff going on," she said. Brittany's Place offered Jessie the stability and support that she needed to address her addiction and heal from trauma. She moved from the shelter into one of Brittany's Place's transitional living programs, where she was able to continue her education while learning independent living skills.
- How the Work Matters to a T.O.N.E. U.P. Peer Navigator: "This work is personal. Every time I walk into the Ramsey County workhouse, I'm not just showing up as a service provider-I'm showing up as someone who lived that reality. That changes everything. People open up differently. They listen differently. They believe something different is possible. What we're building isn't just a program. It's a bridge."
- How the JK Movement Made a Safer Choice Possible: During a one-on-one check-in, another youth shared that they had recently walked away from a situation that could have resulted in a physical altercation. Drawing on conflict-resolution strategies discussed through PIVOT, the youth chose instead to contact a trusted adult for support. This decision demonstrates an important application of PIVOT's prevention and intervention strategies: strengthening a young person's ability to pause, assess risk, use a positive support system, and make a safer decision when confronted with conflict.
Questions?
Contact Neighborhood Safety Community Council Manager Tyler Bouwens at [email protected].
The Organizations
Learn More
Learn More
Learn More
Learn More
Our 2026 Contract Partners
T.O.N.E. U.P.
Teaching Ourselves New Examples of Uplifting People is implementing a peer navigator pilot program to provide individualized support, mentorship, connection to community resources, and more.
JK Movement
The JKM PIVOT program provides services to justice-involved, or at-risk of involvement, youth through self-empowerment and leadership, career pathway corridor services, and community engagement.
Face to Face
The Youth Justice Program provides support to youth touched by the criminal legal system including services of case management, mentorship, advocacy, mental health and wraparound support.
180 Degrees
The Gateway to Drug Abuse Education and Prevention program creates relevant substance abuse prevention curriculum to be used to educate and train their shelter and outreach services staff, as well as ONS and contracted partner staff.
Impact Indicators
Impact Indicators
296
People served by these ONS contract partners so far
31
Participants in 17 restorative-justice circles
17
People reached before release from Ramsey County Correctional Facility
Partner Testimonials
Partner Testimonials
How One Young Person Found Healing with 180 Degrees
Jessie arrived at Brittany's Place after what she thought was a friendship turned to abuse and exploitation. During her trafficking, she turned to substance abuse to cope with the traumatic events. "I was trying to find something new to focus on besides all the stuff going on," she said. Brittany's Place offered Jessie the stability and support that she needed to address her addiction and heal from trauma. She moved from the shelter into one of Brittany's Place's transitional living programs, where she was able to continue her education while learning independent living skills.
How the Work Matters to a T.O.N.E. U.P. Peer Navigator
"This work is personal. Every time I walk into the Ramsey County workhouse, I'm not just showing up as a service provider-I'm showing up as someone who lived that reality. That changes everything. People open up differently. They listen differently. They believe something different is possible. What we're building isn't just a program. It's a bridge."
How the JK Movement Made a Safer Choice Possible
During a one-on-one check-in, another youth shared that they had recently walked away from a situation that could have resulted in a physical altercation. Drawing on conflict-resolution strategies discussed through PIVOT, the youth chose instead to contact a trusted adult for support. This decision demonstrates an important application of PIVOT's prevention and intervention strategies: strengthening a young person's ability to pause, assess risk, use a positive support system, and make a safer decision when confronted with conflict.
Questions?
Contact Neighborhood Safety Community Council Manager Tyler Bouwens at [email protected].
More Neighborhood Safety News
A collage of images showing ONS team members
Applications are Now Open for 2027 ONS Neighborhood Safety Partnerships
8/6/2026 Office of Neighborhood Safety
Every year, the Office of Neighborhood Safety contracts with community organizations to undertake innovative projects to help make Saint Paul safer for all. Applications to work with us in 2027 are open through September 7. We are looking for projects in five key areas: culturally specific violence prevention, support for unhoused neighbors, reducing drug use in City spaces, capacity-building for small organizations, and education for at-risk residents. Find out what we're looking for and learn how to submit your proposal.
Read More2026 ONS Contract Partners: Mid-Year Report
9/1/2026 Office of Neighborhood Safety
This year, the Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS) and the Neighborhood Safety Community Council contracted with four to pursue innovative projects to keep Saint Paul safer. Halfway through the contract period, here's a report on how they're doing.
Read MoreResearch: "Project PEACE is Delivering"
8/6/2026 Office of Neighborhood Safety
Over two years, experts from from the Minnesota Justice Research Center worked closely with Project PEACE, Saint Paul's homegrown gun-violence prevention program, to evaluate the program as it was developing. They released their findings today. Here's the headline: "The data suggest Project PEACE is delivering. Project PEACE life coaches are keeping people safe, alive, and free-and the clients, families, and community members we spoke with made clear that this work matters." Here are key findings, recommendations, and a link to the full report.
Read MoreThe Data behind Neighborhood Safety in Saint Paul
7/23/2026 Office of Neighborhood Safety
The heart of our work at the Office of Neighborhood Safety is as low-tech and analog as it gets: Offering someone a meal or a ride to the doctor, a connection to treatment or housing, an encouraging text when life gets hard. But every human interaction generates data we can use to monitor our work in real time and get better at keeping Saint Paul residents alive, safe, and free. Here's how ONS data analyst Andrew Mua turns human interactions into data-and data into meaning.
Read MoreHow One Army Veteran Found a Home in Saint Paul
7/23/2026 Office of Neighborhood Safety
Since the program began in late 2024, the Familiar Faces program has helped more than 50 people get off the streets of Saint Paul to find safe, permanent housing. Every journey from homelessness to home is a hard-won victory for the team and their clients. But their latest success story is special. Meet Randall Todd, a veteran of the U.S. Army mobile infantry, who can see the bridge where he used to sleep from the windows of his new apartment.
Read More
City of Saint Paul, MN published this content on September 01, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on September 01, 2026 at 20:46 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]