National 4-H Headquarters, Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture announces the 2008 CYFAR Conference May 6-9, 2008, in San Antonio, Texas.
CYFAR 2008 will feature inspiring keynote speakers, current youth and family research presenters, exciting interactive workshops and computer labs, as well as a Program Showcase demonstrating the most successful CYFAR community programs. Plans are underway for a playground build in San Antonio, along with in-depth pre-conference sessions, on May 6. CYFAR 2008 will be at the Hyatt Regency San Antonio, On the Riverwalk
National 4-H Headquarters invites interested child, youth and family professionals to participate in this high quality conference by submitting proposals for Workshops, Computer Labs, Research Posters, and Program Showcase Exhibits. Applications are due October 31, 2007. The Call for Proposals can be found on the CYFAR 2008 Conference website at: http://www.cyfernet.org/cyfar08/
Looking for resources to help leaders, afterschool providers or parents support their teens in making healthy life choices, and dealing with tough issues? University of Minnesota Cooperative Extension has a number of new resources posted on their Parenting Education Resources web site at www.parenting.umn.edu
Fact sheets of interest include:
Teens and Social Networking Websites (new)
Teens and School Violence
Teens and the Internet (revised)
Teens and Meth
Make Space at the Table
Foundations and nonprofit organizations should seize this moment to welcome young people as partners and valued peers in philanthropy and social change.
02.19.2007 -
By Wendy Wheeler
Several new studies point to a growing commitment to social responsibility on the part of young adults, with youth volunteering on the rise and students are going to the polls.
Foundations and nonprofit organizations should seize this moment to welcome young people as partners and valued peers in philanthropy and social change.
In spite of clear signs that young people want to make a contribution, many adults persist in think of them as problems.
Try saying to word 'teenager" to someone and ask what it conjures up. Chances are people will think "lazy", "irresponsible", or a host of other unflattering words.
Well-intentioned foundations and organizations that seek to involve young people in advisory boards or other positions often discuss the challenges of these endeavors.
Many young people are ready and willing to work hard to on social issues. Often, the roadblocks are placed by adults who lack skills and training in youth adult partnerships.
By recognizing this -- and by learning how to work effectively with young people -- adults can build partnerships that strengthen nonprofit organizations and philanthropies.
Organizations and foundations can follow several principles to build successful youth-adult partnerships:
* Don't expect more from a youth than you would from another adult. If a young person shows up for a meeting 15 minutes late, an adult might think, "Aha, a slacker." When a fellow adult shows up 15 minutes late, the same person might think, "That's understandable. They've got deadlines and pressures." So do young people.
* Treat young people as individuals; don't make one youth represent all youth. Young people understand that adults may carry negative images of youth and may generalize from the behavior of a few. Assure young people that you are interested in their individual opinions, and don't expect them to embody an entire population.
* Be careful about interruptions. For the partnership to work, young people must feel they are valued and respected. When interrupted by an adult, young people tend to stop talking. Both parties need to respect each other's right to voice opinions without criticism or censure.
* Remember that your role in a partnership is not to parent. The purpose of youth-adult partnerships is to give both parties a different way to relate to each other.
By investing time and leadership to make these partnerships thrive, we can benefit from the creativity, energy and enthusiasm that young people offer.
Wendy Wheeler is president and CEO of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development in Takoma Park, Md.
This article is from the February 19th, 2007 edition of the Philanthropy Journal online publication,
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is offering an
online truancy reduction tool kit for communities interested in
instituting a truancy reduction program. The tool kit covers such topics
as truancy's extent, causes, and connections to dropping out of school and
delinquency, as well as lessons learned from the evaluation of truancy
reduction programs. It provides resources and information to guide
communities, schools, and parents in addressing the problem of truancy.
Resources:
OJJDP's Tool Kit for Creating Your Own Truancy Reduction Program is
available at
http://ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/publications/PubAbstract.asp?pubi=238899.
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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component
of the Office of Justice Progams in the U.S. Department of Justice.
Subscribe or unsubscribe to JUVJUST.
Visit the OJJDP Web site at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ojjdp.
Nine out of ten (90%) of US voters consider youth crime to be a major problem in our communities. A large majority also believe that rehabilitation services and treatment for incarcerated youth are effective (91%) and well worth supporting with tax dollars (80%). Many (70%) are also concerned that putting youth under age 18 in adult correctional facilities makes them more likely to commit future crimes.
These are some of the findings of a January 2007 public opinion poll about American attitudes toward our nation's response to youth crime. The National Council on Crime and Delinquency commissioned Zogby International to conduct a random sampled telephone survey of 1,043 people from a varied group of voters. In the 1990s, forty states changed their laws related to the treatment of juvenile offenders, to include harsher penalties and lowered age of jurisdiction for the criminal court system. According to the results of this poll, there is clear public concern about youth crime and a desire to hold youth accountable for their misconduct. There is also limited confidence in the effectiveness of the juvenile system, and a desire to enhance public safety with more prevention efforts and effective services fro young people already in trouble.
For the complete report, go to http://www.nccd-crc.org/nccd/pubs/zogby_feb07.pdf
TEENS
Finding Resources to Support Workforce Development Services for Youth
http://www.financeproject.org/publications/workforce_youth.pdf
Getting Serious about Teen Relationship Abuse
http://www.connectforkids.org/node/562
Making Good on a Promise: What Policymakers Can Do to Support the Educational Persistence of Dropouts
http://www.jff.org/JFF_KC_Pages.php?WhichLevel=1&lv1_id=4&lv2_id=0&lv3_id=0&KC_M_ID=287
An Overview of Alternative Education: Helping Disconnect Youth Succeed
http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411283_alternative_education.pdf
10 Things Each of Us Can Do to Help Our Adolescent Boys
http://www.connectforkids.org/node/97?&tn=hp/lf/2
Are Boot Camps Obsolete?
http://www.connectforkids.org/node/5030
The Downside of Girl Power?
http://www.connectforkids.org/node/4257
Cyber Bullying: No Muscles Needed
http://www.connectforkids.org/node/3116
Community-Based Learning: Engaging Students for Success and Citizenship
http://www.communityschools.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=44&Itemid=49Youth as City Leaders
http://www.nlc.org/iyef/networks___assistance/7164.cfm
People, Places and Possibilities: Integrating Mentoring and After-School
http://www.forumfyi.org/Files/ostpc11.pdf
Keeping Your Teens Drug-Free: A Guide for African American Parents and Caregivers
https://ncadistore.samhsa.gov/catalog/productDetails.aspx?ProductID=17295
The Importance Of Professional Development For Youth Workers
http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Professional_Development_Insight.pdf
Out-Of-School Time is Critical for Children: Who Participates in Programs?
http://www.childtrends.org/Files/OST_is_Critical.pdf
Teens as Volunteers
http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Teens_as_Volunteers_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Baby Boomers and Beyond: An Untapped Resource for Volunteers in Out-Of-School Time Programs
http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Baby_Boomers_and_Beyond_Brief.pdf
Putting Youth Work on the Map: Key Findings and Implications from Two Major Workforce Studies
http://www.forumfyi.org/Files//Putting_Youth_Work_on_the_Map.pdf
Understanding the Afterschool Workforce: Opportunities and Challenges for an Emerging Profession
http://www.cornerstones4kids.org/images/NAA_PDF_rw111506.pdf
Growing the Next Generation of Youth Work Professionals: Workforce Opportunities and Challenges
http://www.forumfyi.org/Files//next_gen_final_reportRW1.pdf
PARENT/FAMILY
How to Get Informed, Involved, and Really Help in your Child's Education (no logo)
http://www.ncpen.org/other.html
How to Get Informed, Involved, and Really Help in your Child's Education
http://www.ncpen.org/pi_span.pdf
COMMUNITY
The Public Intersection Toolkit
http://www.sogpubs.unc.edu/singlebook.php?id=969
PROGRAM SUPPORT
Everything You Should Know About Ergonomics and Youths, But Were Afraid to Ask
http://www.aota.org/nonmembers/area1/links/link240.asp
Everything You Should Know About Ergonomics and Youths, But Were Afraid to Ask
http://www.aota.org/nonmembers/area1/links/link240.asp
Fellow Science Educators and Resource Caretakers-
NH has a long history of educational outreach and protection of its natural resources.
Their connection between resources and education has a new partner.
NH Dept of Education and NHPublic TV have joined forces to extend on-line workshops to teachers specifically selected to meet the needs of NH teachers as they prepare for the changes in the new science education frameworks. These on-line workshops also offer opportunities for teachers to showcase their own fieldwork while gain credit in the process.
We urge you to alert the NH teachers that work with your organization to take advantage of this opportunity.
See: http://nheon.org/opennh, or contact Stan Freeda, Open NH Project Coordinator, NHDOE at 271-5132
Two courses are specifically directed to promote informal/formal science relationships:
Designing a Virtual Field Trip (Science)
Transforming the Classroom with Project Based Learning
We look forward to working together towards protecting NH's resources and engaging citizens in maintaining their resources.
Betsy Stefany
Facilitator, Project Based Learning.
On May 23, 2006, at 2:00 p.m. ET, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services will air the first of two Webcasts and satellite broadcasts on Preventing Gangs in Our Communities. (The second will be broadcast on June 6, 2006, at 2:00 p.m. ET.) Gang specialists from federal and local law enforcement agencies and community and faith-based organizations will join participants in discussing what law enforcement and communities are doing to share responsibility for gang prevention.
Resources: To obtain further information about these broadcasts and to sign up to participate, visit http://www.DOJConnect.com.
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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component of the Office of Justice Progams in the U.S. Department of Justice. TO subscribe to JUVJUST: Visit the OJJDP Web site at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ojjdp.
Harvard Family Research Project’s (HFRP) announces two new resources in the out-of-school time field: a research brief on youth out-of-school time participation, and an update to their Out-of-School Time Evaluation Database and Bibliography.
1. WHAT ARE KIDS GETTING INTO THESE DAYS? DEMOGRAPHIC DIFFERENCES IN YOUTH OUT-OF-SCHOOL TIME PARTICIPATION
This is a research brief on youth out-of-school time participation based on a study supported by the William T. Grant Foundation. It examines the factors associated with whether children and youth participate in out-of-school time (OST) programs and activities. Building on previous work, HFRP is using national data to examine the many factors and contexts in children’s lives that predict participation. This new research brief distills findings from the first phase of the study on demographic characteristics of youth participants and includes implications for practitioners, policymakers, and researchers. The research brief is available online at:
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/projects/afterschool/resources/demographic.html
2. OUT-OF-SCHOOL TIME DATABASE and BIBLIOGRAPHY UPDATE
HFRP has written a new profile of an out-of-school time research project:
* The Massachusetts Afterschool Research Study
They have also added 8 new profiles about out-of-school time programs and their evaluations:
* 21st Century Community Learning Centers - Texas (a quasi-experimental and non-experimental evaluation design)
* Adventure Central (non-experimental)
* CHAMPS (quasi-experimental, non-experimental)
* Generacion DIez (quasi-experimental)
* KindergARTen Summer Camp (experimental)
* North Carolina Quality Enhancement Initiative (quasi-experimental)
* NYC FIRST! (non-experimental)
* Young Women's Leadership Alliance (Quasi-experimental, non-experimental)
You can access both the database and the bibliography at: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/projects/afterschool/evaldatabase.html
Would you like successful strategies for recruiting and retaining immigrant youth? The National Collaboration for Youth plans to help their affiliates improve in the delivery of services to immigrant youth. To do this, they are surveying to find out what is happening at both national and local levels. They hope this results in identification of promising practices related to where organizationa would most like assistance. The survey only takes 5 to 10 minutes, and you don't have to answer all questions if you don't have the data requested. To help with this effort, the survey can be found at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=177361729039
Contact: Pam Garza, Director
National Youth Development Learning Network
National Collaboration for Youth/National Human Services Assembly
1319 F Street, Suite 402
Washington DC 20004
(202) 347-1080 15
(202) 393-517 (fax)