"We do education, intervention, and prevention," says Diane F. Scott, program director for the Willis Moore Youth Center, which sees about 100 Cambridge students each week.

The centers stress non-violence and run weekly workshops on topics from drug and violence prevention to SAT prep courses and basketball games, Scott says.

The city's youth programs are effective at keeping Cambridge's kids off the street, Scott says. But that doesn't do anything for the hordes of out-of-town students.

Cambridge is a very accessible city, officials say, and that contributes to youth crime.

"We have a train that runs right through Cambridge," Pasquarello says. "You can get in and out of Cambridge in a short amount of time."

Because of that, much of the crime is focused around the city's big T stops: Harvard, Central and Porter.

An even bigger contributing factor, police say, is the area's attractive--and extensive--social scene. It may not be the Big Apple, but Cambridge attracts students and youths from around the Boston-area.

"Cambridge is a city where you really never sleep," Pasquarello says. "You could come in at 3 o'clock in the morning on a Friday or Saturday night and it looks like 4 o'clock in the afternoon."