 | Community Youth Development | K-12 Civic Education | Engaged Campus Community Youth Development The community youth development movement, which began in the early 1990s, recognizes young people not as bundles of "deficits" in need of fixing by "expert" adults, but as engaged and empowered citizens doing the vital work of building communities and transforming institutions to serve the broad public good. In this section, you will find key essays and reports that have shaped the emerging CYD movement, as well as case studies of youth/adult partnerships, youth-in-governance, youth philanthropy, youth commissions, youth organizing, and other forms of youth civic engagement. You will also find strategic initiatives by major national youth associations, such as 4-H. For training manuals, best practice guides, and other resources click on Tools. Essays and Reports Community, Youth, Development: Three Goals in Search of Connection. (1996) by Karen J. Pittman, presents a key, succinct statement of community youth development by one of the field's prominent leaders. Youth Action: Youth Contributing to Communities, Communities Supporting Youth (2001: 896 KB pdf), by Merita Irby, Thaddeus Ferber, and Karen Pittman of the Forum for Youth Investment. This report provides an essential frame for “youth action” as a key component of youth development and maps a diversity of approaches and pathways. Its accompanying report, Youth Acts, Community Impacts: Stories of Youth Engagement with Real Results (2001: 1.2 MB pdf), by Joel Tolman and Karen Pittman, provides case studies from around the world, including The Food Project (Massachusetts), Lubec Aquaculture Project (Maine), Philadelphia Student Union, and Educational Video Center (New York). National Conversation on Youth Development in the 21st Century, (2002, 492K pdf), by National 4-H Council. Based on 1,640 local and state conversations among some 50,000 youth and adults throughout the 4-H system marking its recent centennial, this report articulates a vision of “empowering youth as equal partners” and “equal citizens.” It includes bold recommendations on how to do this in government, schools, community organizations, and private-sector initiatives. The New Girls Movement (2001: 236 KB pdf), by P. Catlin.Fullwood for the Collaborative Fund for Healthy Girls, Healthy Women and the Ms. Foundation for Women.. This report develops some of the core principles underlying the increasing number of projects aimed at empowering girls and young women, both in their general efforts to make real contributions to their communities and in their specific attempts to address issues such as sexual harassment, violence, and media-mediated body images that can disable girls and young women from being effective citizens and “authors of their own lives.” An accompanying tool, New Girls Movement: New Assessment Tools for Youth Programming (2000: 1.5 MB pdf), presents a hands-on guide to participatory evaluation research in the new girls programming. Youth in Decision-Making: A Study on the Impacts of Youth on Adults and Organizations (2000: 672K pdf), by Shepherd Zeldin et al. for The Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, examines the principles and practices of youth/adult partnerships and how organizations can change to provide youth a significant role in governance. Case studies drawn from 15 innovative organizations. Education-Based Community Development. (1992)
by Michael J. Shannon. The Public Purpose of 4-H: Engaging Youth in Civic Contribution. (1997)
by Gregory K. Hutchins. The Youth Service Movement. (1995)
by Matthew Moseley Case Studies "Active Citizenship" and Youth Citizenship Awards Empower Youth. Through the "Active Citizenship" curriculum, students in grades 7-12 gain the knowledge, skills, and values that are essential for responsible citizenship. A vital component is a group project, in which students identify a real political problem, research related issues, and propose a solution. Students then compete in the Youth Citizenship Awards program, which recognizes outstanding problem-solving efforts. Case study plus. AmeriCorps Builds Citizens and Communities. AmeriCorps is a national service program whose goal is getting things done: AmeriCorps programs address the nation's education, public safety, environmental, and human needs and achieve demonstrable results, as well as strengthen communities and develop participants. Case study plus. . Community Boards of San Francisco Strengthen "Civic Muscles" through Conflict Resolution. Believing that the community is where the responsibility for problem solving and conflict resolution should first fall, where the most effective prevention work can be done, and where meaningful lessons about conflict and its impact on friends, neighbors, and community can best be learned, the Community Board Program provides free community mediation services in San Francisco and offers conflict resolution-related program development and training assistance to schools, juvenile correctional facilities, and other agencies nationwide. Story and case study plus. Consortium of Caring Communities: Weaving 101. Indiana's Consortium of Caring Communities Engages Citizens in Making Communities Hospitable Places for Children, Youth, and Families. The mission of the Consortium of Caring Communities is to "build a movement that puts children and young people first, a movement that supports the healthy development of children, youth and families, one that begins small, but grows eventually to touch every county in Indiana," by creating a network of support for county-based initiatives. Case study plus. Health and Human Services Develops the Capacity of Communities To Empower and Save Their Youth. With the support of HHS, Together! Thurston Communities for a Drug-Free Youth in Thurston, Washington, and the Child Development Council in Columbus, Ohio have engaged youth, parents, civic organizations, the faith community, and others in empowering young people to live healthy and productive lives. In Thurston, they developed a 30-point community youth agenda that involved the schools, law enforcement, business and the media. In Columbus, they created a "parents as teachers" program to complement Head Start, and also provide substance abuse prevention, immunization, and job training and education for parents. Story. National 4-H Council Builds Partnerships Involving Youth in Problem Solving. The 4-H movement began in the early 1900s, strengthening rural education for young people. Volunteer local leaders are the backbone of 4-H. They partner with county Extension agents to provide direct leadership and educational support to youth in local neighborhoods and communities. More than 5.4 million youth, ages 5-19, participate each year in 4-H. Story. Networking for Youth Builds a Better Future Through Mentoring. This broad-based coalition between business, labor, schools, non-profits, and social service agencies is mobilizing a wide array of individuals and organizations to invest in young people by developing a model community mentoring program. The community is one of fourteen working with the Pew Partnership for Civic Change, which focuses attention on the civic capacity of smaller cities. Case study plus. Public Achievement Engages Youth in Citizen Politics. Public Achievement is the youth and politics initiative of Project Public Life, part of the Center for Democracy and Citizenship, at the University of Minnesota. It provides training in citizen politics for many youth organizations and teams around the country, which engage in year-long projects together. Public Achievement also publishes a practical guidebook, Making the Rules, for youth teams that wish to make changes in their communities. Case study plus. Teen Pregnancy Addressed in Public Forums. Lee County Extension Agents in Alabama have used the citizen politics model to bring a wide array of citizens—including teenagers—together to address the causes of teen pregnancy, with a focus on possible solutions. Story. Weaving Youth and Civic Development. At the Wingspread conference, Emerging Best Practices: Weaving the Work of Youth and Civic Development, participants analyzed stories from groundbreaking projects integrating youth and civic development; crafted a set of principles linking the fields of youth, civic and community development; and developed strategies for communicating these in practice. In accomplishing this, they activated a network of partners, seeded a national movement and called for a locally-driven multiplication of opportunities to fully engage young people in public life. Case study plus. Young People Organize for the Environment. In Calhoun County, Alabama, young people involved in 4-H have used the citizen politics model to involve their local communities in ground water protection. The young people held debates, developed action plans, and organized an Earth Day cleanup. Story. |
