VICKSBURG, Miss. (WJTV) – The City of Vicksburg formed the Youth Violence Prevention Committee to help combat juvenile violence.

The committee held a meeting with interested community members on Wednesday to get feedback and ideas on a new program to stop juvenile violence.

“This program is not just designed for kids that are in trouble. This program is designed for everybody. You have the good and you have the bad. The bad, we want to have an opportunity to send them in the right direction,” said Vicksburg Police Chief Penny Jones.

Jones says troubled kids will participate in things like mentoring and job skill training to help them improve their lives.

The program will use a multi-prong approach of education, intervention, prevention, parental coaching, family counseling and other relevant factors.

“With Judge Southerland making referrals, we know who to send those kids to. We’re not going to put everybody in the same pot, so everybody is going to different place,” said Jones.

Vicksburg Mayor George Flaggs said this is the first step in taking care of the future of Vicksburg and believes it will focus on mental health, psychological and behavioral safety and wellbeing of the children.