Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who will join Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and two dozen other public officials at the forum, said the county since 2013 has put $11.5 million toward addressing community dysfunction on the front end, before youth get into the criminal justice system. Most of that is for violence prevention, anti-recidivism and restorative justice, but $1 million of it is for a pilot employment program, expected to start in June, to help 200 "opportunity youth" (16- to 24- year-olds who are not working or in school or at risk of getting involved in the justice system) in select communities get training .