This paper focuses on "technologies for voice" that are related to the self-determination of youth with developmental disabilities. The authors describe a self-determination model that values family-focused, community-referenced pedagogies employing "new media" to give voice to youth and their families. In line with the adage that a picture is…

Learning leadership happens experientially, through involvement in opportunities to practice the skills, experiment with approaches, and try on the roles. For youth leadership development, it means creating opportunities for young people to do more than hear stories of great leadership or participate in skills-building activities. In much of her…

This publication is part of a series of tools and resources on financing and sustaining youth programming. These tools and resources are intended to help policymakers, program developers, and community leaders develop innovative strategies for implementing, financing, and sustaining effective programs and policies. This guide outlines strategies…

The guide is designed to help states and localities create or strengthen their own youth councils. It is a synthesis of theory and practice that provides a general framework for thinking about youth councils, explaining the principles for youth action and the importance of youth engagement. It also incorporates advice and lessons from people in…

This introduction, one of three parts of "Adding It Up: A Guide to Mapping Public Resources for Children, Youth and Families," explains the why, how and what behind creating a children, youth, and families (CYF) resource map. Setting the stage for what's involved in the process, this overview provides a good framework for understanding both the…

The Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development is a Washington, D.C.-based organization engaged in programming, research, and policy development related to youth civic engagement. Its mission is to unleash the potential of youth, adults, organizations, and communities to engage together in creating a just and equitable society. Strong…

This publication presents the real-life experiences of 32 young people who participated in youth programs that helped guide them to success. The featured young people got themselves organized, developed skills, and took charge of their lives, many of them overcoming major barriers to do so. They were able to get on track because of effective youth…

Describes the efforts of parish leaders to create a successful youth ministry at St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Marrero, Louisiana. Outlines common denominators of success in dealing with adolescents, and advocates the necessity of a community service component in parish youth ministry. (YKH)

Karl Kendall knows that while comic books, computers, and daily movies will grab teens' interest, what they long for most is respect. As head of Teen Central, a 4,000 square foot space on the fourth floor of Phoenix's Burton Barr Central Library, Kendall provides teens with a place where their ideas and opinions are listened to, their talents…

Unaccompanied youth are young people who lack safe, stable housing and who are not in the care of a parent or guardian. They may have run away from home or been forced to leave by their parents. Unaccompanied youth live in a variety of temporary situations, including shelters, the homes of friends or relatives, cars, campgrounds, public parks,…

In two chapters, this report describes the objectives of the Coalition for National Service, a group of individuals and organizations that support state and local youth service initiatives, foster discussion and debate on national service, and endorse a national service action agenda. Chapter 1 gives a brief overview of the status of, and…

This book presents lessons learned after 4 years of Promising and Effective Practices Network (PEPNet), a project of the National Youth Employment Coalition that identifies and promotes criteria of effective practice in youth employment and development. The book, which provides a cumulative summary of all PEPNet programs, is a resource that brings…

Argues for the importance of providing adolescents with opportunities to care about and contribute to their communities. Briefly describes several programs that have been based on youth participation. (IRT)

Profiles programs of two youth centers that are successfully bridging cultural differences through the development of cultural competence. Both centers acknowledge that actualizing cross-cultural competency means providing a way for their ethnic groups to interact with the larger population without losing their cultural heritage. Programs include…

This paper reports on an initiative that took the strategy of youth consultation in programme planning one step further by putting a research project's design, data collection, analysis and presentation of findings in the hands of young women and men who have experienced education and discontinuity of education in a long-term refugee camp. The…