Positive Youth Development

Jeanette Nadonley, DC BA September 20, 2012

Success
How

do you define success? What Characteristics, skill attributes would you like to see in a youth? How do we get the desired outcomes? List challenges, risks, difficult situations a youth encounters

Small Group Activity

Pretend
What

you are a teenager, 13-17 years old.

does your life look like? What influences are shaping your life? What challenges are you facing? What is helping you through a difficult time?

What Do Young People Need to Thrive

t
Engagement Connectedness Preparedness Safety and Basic Needs What do young people need to thrive?

What Do Young People Need to Thrive

Safety and Basic Needs Young people need their needs met (shelter, food, etc.) and feel safe before they can grow and learn. Youth in survival mode do not thrive. Preparedness Young people need to develop competencies and skills to ready themselves for work and adult life. Competencies include: academic, social, emotional, vocational and cultural.

What Do Young People Need to Thrive

Connectedness Young people need to belong, to be connected to family and community to thrive. A growing body of brain research indicates that we are hardwired to connect. It is a core requisite to learn, develop and interact with the world. Engagement Young people need opportunities to engage in meaningful activities, have a voice, take responsibility for their actions, and actively participate in civic discourse.

What are Strengths?

Talents Skills Knowledge Interests Dreams/Hopes/Goals Creativity Culture Passion Connections

What is Strengths Based Approach?

Emerging

from the field of social work, it is a set of ideas, assumptions, and techniques: People are active participants in the helping process (empowerment) All people have strengths, often untapped or unrecognized Strengths foster motivation for growth Strengths are internal and environmental

Outcomes
How

are young people reaching these outcomes? We as mentors and community members need to provide opportunities for young people to have a range of experiences, to learn and engage in meaningful activities throughout their journey to adulthood. Many of you are doing this already in different settings.

 Learning can and needs to happen in all environments. Its not just the responsibility of schools or parents. It happens 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Its a long term commitment. Young people need opportunities throughout childhood and adolescence. Learning opportunities and experiences need to be developmentally appropriate. A 12 year old has different abilities and needs than a 16 year old.

5 Cs
Competence
Confidence Character Connection Contribution

Competence
The ability and motivation for

Civic and social engagement Cultural engagement Physical health Emotional health Intellectual achievement Employability

 Civic and social: Develop social and cooperative skills activities can highlight team projects, community service projects, cooperative games, teambuilding. Cultural: Develop cultural competence and awareness activities can inform about different cultural backgrounds, include research on historic struggles, multicultural experiences (food, art/dances, celebrations); agency uses pictures/posters highlighting different cultural groups in community.

Physical health: Promote healthy choices and healthy life styles activities include physical activities, healthy nutrition, peer education on health issues.

 Emotional health: Develop and practice ability to recognize and express emotions appropriately activities include a reflection process to recognize and express emotional reactions, include exercises on handling anger and frustration; provide support for stressful circumstances; caring adult relationships . Intellectual: Promote basic academic skills as well as critical thinking and problem solving skills tutoring and homework support, community projects that include research and problem solving components; promote independent or small group projects; recognition. Employability: Develop basic work skills and provide information on career paths activities foster communication and socialization skills, field trips, speakers (community members and mentors) discussing career paths.

Confidence
Having

a sense of mastery and future Having a sense of self-efficacy

opportunities to demonstrate skills, recognition and feedback.

Character
Having

a sense of responsibility and autonomy Having a sense of spirituality and selfawareness Having an awareness of ones own personality or individuality

Having a sense of responsibility, ones own personality, pro-social values program provides positive role models, adult relationships, recognition of responsible behavior

Connection
Membership

and belonging Having a sense of safety and structure

Having a sense of membership and belonging and safety provide a psychological and physical safe space; clear behavior expectations and consequences; branding (logo or product identifying membership), caring relationships, connection with mentor and other community groups

Contribution
Being

involved as active participant and decision maker in services, organizations and community

Being an active participant, having an impact provide opportunities for leadership, youth voice; community service; civic engagement.

Long-Term Commitment
Young

people need to be nurtured and supported

24

hours a day, 7 days a week First 20 years of their lives In accordance with their developmental needs Through a variety of supportive relationships and programs

Adult Allies
Allies

are adults who advocate and support young people. They assist young people in their lives, support them when they struggle, and let them know how important they are and that change is possible.

Adult Allies
Skills

and opportunities that might help us become adult allies - self-reflection

active listening - teambuilding, cooperative learning - knowledge of adolescent development - cultural sensitivity

Features of Effective Youth Development Settings

Collaboration Continuum
Trust
Merging Structure

Turf
Sharing Resources
Changing Services

Cross Training

Sharing Information

Networking

Coordinating

Cooperating

Collaborating

Integrating

Collaboration Continuum
Networking-

Exchanging information for mutual benefit. This is easy to do; requires low initial level of trust; limited time availability and no sharing of turf. Coordinating- Exchanging information and altering program activities for mutual benefit and to achieve a common purpose. Requires more organizational involvement than networking, higher level of trust and some access to ones turf.

Cooperating - Exchanging information, altering activities and sharing resources for mutual benefit and to achieve a common purpose. Increased organizational commitment, may involve written agreements, shared resources can involve human, financial and technical contributions. Requires a substantial amount of time, high level of trust and significant sharing of turf. Collaborating - Exchanging information, altering activities, sharing resources and enhancing each others capacity for mutual benefit and to achieve a common goal. The qualitative difference to cooperating is that organizations and individuals are willing to learn from each other to become better at what they do. Collaborating means that organizations share risks, responsibilities and rewards. It requires a substantial time commitment, very high level of trust, and sharing turf.

Integrating - Completely merging two organizations in regards to client operations as well as administrative structure. Collaborative efforts are only successful in facilitating change if they are supported from the top down and he bottom up. Administrative support is needed to allow front line staff to make decisions about agency resources shared in a collaborative effort. Both, front line and administrative staff must be open and willing to go beyond business as usual.

To Reach The Top Requires Teamwork

Mentees are not expected to do it alonethey need your help!!