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KCYDN on Facebook
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An overwhelming amount of youth development resources, research and best practices exist. Below are some of the most relevant and comprehesive resources. If you know of a resource that should be added, please email kcydn@childrenandyouth.org or post it to the message board.
Resources are categorized by the goals outlined in SOAR's King County Action Agenda for School-Age Children and Youth:
- Access to Quality Out-of-School Programs: Children and youth have full and safe access to local, quality, engaging and relevant programs that help them succeed in school and in life.
- Meaningful Roles: Children and youth have culturally relevant and age-appropriate opportunities to be leaders, decision makers, and engaged members of a community that values them.
- Meaningful Relationships: Children and youth have positive, healthy, and nurturing relationships with caregivers, family, peers, mentors, program staff, and their community; these relationships guide and inspire them toward success.
- Resiliency & Valued Identities: Children and youth build resiliency and participate safely, without experiencing or expressing bias, as valued members of diverse, conscientious communities.
Youth Development Resources
SOAR Goal One: Access to Quality Out-of-School Programs
The Forum for Youth Investment is a nonprofit, nonpartisan "action tank" dedicated to helping communities and the nation make sure all young people are Ready by 21®: ready for college, work and life. Informed by rigorous research and practical experience, the Forum forges innovative ideas, strategies and partners to strengthen solutions for young people and those who care about them. A trusted resource for policy makers, advocates, researchers and program professionals, the Forum provides youth and adult leaders with the information, connections and tools they need to create greater opportunities and outcomes for young people.
Highscope Foundation: Youth Program Quality Assessment (PQA)
The Youth Program Quality Assessment (PQA) is a validated instrument designed to evaluate the quality of youth programs and identify staff training needs. It has been used in community organizations, schools, camps, and other places where youth have fun, work, and learn with adults. The Youth PQA evaluates the quality of youth experiences as youth attend workshops and classes, complete group projects, and participate in meetings and regular program activities. For staff, the Youth PQA process is a great way to see what is really happening in their programs and to build professional competencies.
The Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development works to unleash the potential of youth, adults, organizations and communities to engage together in creating a just and equitable society.
National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth (NCFY)
NCFY is an information resource of the Family and Youth Services Bureau within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NCFY provides resources for people who work with at-risk youth and families to realize their goals, better serve their communities and improve the lives of young people and their families. Whether you’re a youth worker, concerned parent or young person working to help your peers, NCFY's extensive research library and network of grantees can help you find the information you need. Services include grant opportunities, connections to like-minded local potential partners, a research library, and e-newsletters.
National Youth Development Information Center
NYDIC is a one-stop website for youth workers with interest in any and all of the following areas: funding, programming, research, policy, job and training opportunities. NYDIC also provides current news to the youth development field and has one of the largest online libraries, providing practice-related information at low-cost or no cost.
Search Institute is an independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide leadership, knowledge, and resources to promote healthy children, youth, and communities. Search developed the 40 Developmental Asset model.
Youth Leadership, Civic Engagement & Service
SOAR Goal Two: Meaningful Roles for Children & Youth
CIRCLE (The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement) promotes research on the civic and political engagement of Americans between the ages of 15 and 25.
SoundOut! & the Freechild Project
The SoundOut! Website is a national online resource center designed to promote meaningful student involvement in school change. SoundOut! is a program of The Freechild Project (based in Olympia, WA) in partnership with the HumanLinks Foundation.
Youth on Board prepares youth to be leaders and decision makers in their communities and strengthens relationships between youth and adults through publications, customized workshops, and technical assistance.
Youth as Resources (YAR) is a philosophy and a program that recognizes youth as valuable community resources and engages them as partners with adults in bringing about positive community change. The three principles of YAR are: Youth-adult partnership in governance; Youth as grantmakers; Youth-led service.
Community Partnerships with Youth, Inc.
Community Partnerships with Youth Inc, CPYInc, is a non-profit national training and resource development organization. CPYInc has over ten years of experience in promoting increased youth voice in organizations and communities.
National Youth Leadership Council
For more than 25 years, NYLC has led a movement that links youth, educators, and communities to redefine the roles of young people in society. That movement is service-learning, and it empowers youth to transform themselves from recipients of information and resources into valuable, contributing members of a democracy.
National Youth Advocacy Coalition
The National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC) is the only national organization focused solely on improving the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth through advocacy, education, and information.
Mentoring & Youth Worker Skills
SOAR Goal Three: Meaningful Relationships
Youth Development Worker Competencies from NYDIC
A list of core competencies including knowledge, skills and personal attributes needed by entry-level youth development workers for effective youth development practice. Youth Development core competencies are the “demonstrated capacities” that form a foundation for high-quality performance in the workplace, contribute to the mission of the organization and allow a youth development worker to be a resource to youth, organizations and communities.
Next Generation Youth Work Coalition
The Next Generation Youth Work Coalition brings together indivduals and organizations dedicated to developing a strong, diverse after-school and youth development workforce that is stable, prepared, supported and committed to the well-being and empowerment of children and youth. We believe that this entails progress in at least five key areas: standards and competencies; professional development and training resources; learning delivery systems; career ladders and compensation guidelines; and research and evaluation systems. The primary role the Coalition is to inform and support ongoing discussions about the public policy, institutional, organizational and individual changes needed to create a stable, prepared, supported workforce.
Cultural Competency and Anti-Bias
SOAR Goal Four: Resiliency & Valued Identities
A youth resource (web site) by and for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people, takes a holistic approach to sexual health and issues of concern to queer youth.
Compiled by the Seattle School District’s Department of Equity and Race Relations, this site features an extensive list of resources for educators. Resources are available on: Awareness, Knowledge, Skills, Action/Advocacy, Resources for Students, GLBT Books, Walk Through Tools, Local Trainers and Resources, and Tips for Addressing Holidays.
The Safe Schools Coalition is a public-private partnership of 80+ organizations (government agencies, schools, community agencies, churches, youth/student groups, gay/lesbian groups, human rights groups) and 400+ individuals working to help schools become safe places where every family can belong, where every educator can teach, and where every child can learn, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation. Safe Schools Coalition provides resources to schools (posters, publications), raises parent/guardian, student, educator and community awareness (list serve, website, public speaking, media), provides skill-based training for educators (administrators and other professional and paraprofessional staff), serves as a technical advisory resource (to researchers, policy-makers, educators and activists -- students, parents/guardians, community members), and conducts and disseminates research (to educators, policy-makers and activists).
Founded in 1991 by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Teaching Tolerance is dedicated to reducing prejudice, improving intergroup relations and supporting equitable school experiences for our nation's children. To us, tolerance is an ethic.
Rethinking Race and Class
Generative Somatics 2012: Somatics & Trauma Seattle!
