Summer camps are a common youth development setting in North America; however, youth from low-income backgrounds often cannot attend because of financial barriers. Subsequently, although a robust camp literature exists, little is known about the lasting benefits for youth from low-income backgrounds. Even less is known about how these outcomes may…

This Equity Brief focuses on disrupting the dominant narratives around inclusion by asking the question, "Whose Voice Matters" in creating inclusive schools. Ensuring that youth from historically marginalized groups have leadership opportunities and have their voices heard is one way to support and empower them. Supporting students of…

One of the greatest challenges in education today is to adapt and respond to a linguistically and culturally diverse world, and to combat social disintegration and discrimination. Participatory and collaborative action research represents an empowering and emancipatory approach to this challenge because the "target groups" become…

Initially drawing from, yet then expanding on the research discussed in this volume, this article discusses specific measures that practitioners, researchers, and policymakers can take to support purpose among youth. Strategies for educators include utilizing practical purpose teaching tools, such as purpose interviews, purpose-related…

Taking risks is fairly common in adolescence. Risky behaviors can be associated with serious, long-term, and--in some cases--life-threatening consequences. This is especially the case when adolescents engage in more than one harmful behavior. The tendency for risky behaviors to co-occur has been well-studied. Yet prevention efforts traditionally…

It is hard to imagine a more critical time for helping the low-skilled and disenfranchised youth in our communities to become gainfully employed. Even as the nation suffers through its worst economic downturn in decades, America's business and industry leaders are predicting an unprecedented shortage of educated and skilled workers to meet the…

In recent years, there has been increased policy interest in the way young people spend their time out of school, and in promoting the availability of opportunities for them to spend this time in productive and developmentally supportive ways. Out-of-school opportunities (such as arts and music programs, sports teams, community service, youth …