Jorja Leap, adjunct associate professor of social welfare at UCLA's Luskin School of Public Affairs and a well-known gang expert, has recently been tapped to bring her expertise to assist officials at three different levels — Los Angeles; the State of California; and Glasgow, Scotland.
Leap was named clinical director of the Watts Regional Strategy, a position granted to her by the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office. Based on her work with “Project Fatherhood,” she will be working closely with the director of the Mayor’s Office Gang Reduction and Youth Development, Guillermo Cespedes.
“He is a UCLA Luskin Senior Fellow,” Leap said, “and I am hoping to really involve Luskin students with this work. We are looking to build the capacity of case managers and community intervention workers.”
Leap has also been named to the California Board of State and Community Corrections' Gang Committee. She is the only academic appointee on the 10-member committee, which includes primarily members of law enforcement and politicians.
Based on her work with Homeboy and Homegirl industries as well as her acclaimed book, “Jumped In: What Gangs Taught Me About Violence,” Leap was recently contacted by the Violence Reduction Unit in Glasgow. Leap will travel to Scotland in late May to meet with gang members as well as legislators about developing a system similar to Homeboy Industries.
