The violence prevention group component of the Rutgers-Somerset Counseling Program, a prevention program for multi-problem youth based in a local junior high school, was established in response to appeals made by school staff for help addressing surges in school and community violence and the rising incidence of aggression among female students. The Program is staffed by doctoral students from the Clinical and School Psychology Psy.D. programs at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology and the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at Rutgers University in New Jersey. As graduate student therapists facilitate prevention groups, training is vital to the successful implementation of the violence prevention program. Thus, a training manual was developed to provide a sense of structure, support and maintain prevention focus, impart fundamental information, and facilitate consistency of implementation of these violence prevention groups. In a field that is increasingly placing more importance on evidence based treatment, this training manual is the first step in creating a program that is standardized across groups in the project and amenable to program effectiveness evaluations. Based on an extensive literature review, four years of experience leading groups within the Rutgers-Somerset Counseling Program, and collaboration with the Program's director and supervisor, a set of topics and skills related to facilitation of violence prevention groups as well as competencies felt to be essential for training graduate student therapists were identified. The manual, entitled Preventing Violence and Decreasing Risky Behaviors Among Adolescent Girls, is comprised of several parts each representing specific training areas: (a) description of the Rutgers-Somerset Counseling Program, (b) overview of the developmental period of adolescence, group dynamics and theory, and issues and techniques associated with running groups, (c) issues associated with school-based services run by outside organizations, (d) summary of group life, including group selection, composition, and management, (e) session topics, including areas highlighted in the literature as effective components of violence prevention programs as well as crisis management, (f) supervision of groups, and (g) an appendix consisting of logistical information needed to work in the school and lead prevention groups. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]