Safe Steps Forward: Enhancing Community Safety for Youth with Disabilities

Community safety

San Fernando Valley Other

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are a marginalized group often excluded from safe, inclusive community participation. They face systemic barriers in transportation, employment readiness, and independent mobility, core challenges linked to community safety, income inequality, and public transit. Without the ability to safely navigate transportation systems, neurodiverse individuals are cut off from education, jobs, and social life, increasing dependence and vulnerability. Limited pathways to employment further deepen income inequality and hinder financial independence. Without targeted, skill-building interventions, this population remains isolated, underemployed, and at greater risk of long-term marginalization. Addressing these inequities is essential to building a safer, more inclusive Los Angeles.

The New Horizons Youth Navigation Center (YNC) is a person-centered, early intervention program that addresses systemic barriers preventing individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) from fully and safely participating in their communities. A core component of YNC is transportation and travel training, critical for overcoming one of the greatest barriers to employment: safe, reliable access to and from work. Aligned with our mission to advance the rights and life choices of neurodiverse individuals, YNC supports students ages 16–21 in building independent living and employment readiness skills. Through lessons in pedestrian safety, stranger danger, and safe transit use, students confidently navigate to and from jobs, addressing the nearly double unemployment rate among people with disabilities. When individuals with I/DD feel safe moving through their communities, they become more integrated into society, helping reduce barriers in safety, transit access, and income inequality for a historically marginalized population. In 2024, YNC served 351 students through partnerships with LAUSD, William S. Hart, and Simi Valley school districts and is expanding to Glendale, Burbank, and Conejo Valley Unified. One caregiver shared, “…she loves getting up each morning and has a purpose to go to her work—just like her mom, dad, and sister… Isn’t that all that we want for our kids? To be wanted, loved, and to know they are doing good in the community!”

Because of the Youth Navigation Center Program, Los Angeles County will lead the way in creating safer, more inclusive, and more equitable communities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and will be stronger overall as a result. More residents will navigate public spaces and transit systems confidently and safely, reducing barriers to education, employment, and community life. With improved career readiness and access to paid work experience, income inequality will decline, and financial independence will rise. Our expansion to additional school districts will help create seamless pathways from youth to adulthood. LA County will become a model for disability inclusion where neurodiverse individuals are not only supported but empowered to contribute meaningfully to the region’s social and economic life.