Youth Development and Community Development Go Hand in Hand

When considering how young people play into the mix of healthy communities, many think it’s just about the quality of their schools. Or how many youth centers are in the neighborhood. Or even what the juvenile crime rate looks like. Positive youth development, however, is a framework that relies on all the factors that intersect with a young person’s life – including, perhaps most importantly, the physical and economic communities in which he or she grows up.

Karen Pittman, at The Forum for Youth Investment, puts it this way: “[positive youth development] is the ongoing growth process in which all youth are engaged in attempting to meet their basic personal and social needs to be safe, feel cared for, be valued, be useful, and be spiritually grounded; and to build skills and competencies that allow them to function and contribute in their daily lives.” The most interesting aspect of this description is the way it presents youth development as an ongoing process. We often think of simply “solving youth problems” with quick, punitive fixes: kids hanging out too late? Pass a curfew ordinance. It’s perceived that more kids than ever are doing drugs? Adopt a zero tolerance policy. Substandard test scores? Decrease school funding. We know that real solutions are much more complex than that. Offering young people high expectations, combined with high levels of support go a long way towards better outcomes across all areas.

It sounds a lot like what makes healthy, sound communities, too. Solid community economic development is a thoughtful combination of the people, places, supports, and services that we inherently know our neighborhoods need to create successful growth for everyone. And quality youth development is an important contributor to that success; it’s only when all the players come together, strategically, in a way that makes sense for everyone, can real progress occur.

For more information about how MCCOY promotes positive youth development in Central Indiana, click here.

2010 Learning Network Preview

MCCOY’s Learning Network provides professional development opportunities to enhance the knowledge and abilities of the local youth services community. Workshops and trainings provide participants with new insights as well as opportunities to share their own knowledge and experiences.

See what' learning and networking opportunities will be available in 2010 through MCCOY's Learning Network. Download 2010 Preview.

Learn more about MCCOY's Learning Network.

How Do We Engage Young People?

Engaging young people in the programs youth organizations offer is easier said than done. And the reality is, the fact that youth simply “show up” doesn’t mean they’re invested or engaged in the activities. So how do we create better opportunities for young people to really get engaged in? Better engagement ultimately leads to better results. Here are some ideas to jump start your youth engagement approach:

• Be youth-centered, not just outcomes-centered. Build relationships, and respect young people’s relationships with their peers and families. While building relationships, help build futures by planning for what happens when they’re not at your center or program.
• Pay special attention to how your center’s programs coordinate with each other. Tailor your services so they’re accessible and allow young people to pursue their goals across interests.
• Encourage personal choice and social responsibility in the young people you work with.
• Get to know what the young person’s support safety-net looks like; who are the key people who make a difference in his or her life?
• No matter what the program, focus on assisting young people achieve greater self-sufficiency and confidence.

Some of the tips above are adapted from the Transition to Independence Process (TIP), developed in a partnership with the University of South Florida and the Department of Child & Family Studies. Click here for many more resources about the findings.

MCCOY Hires Staff to Focus on Supporting Youth Workers & Youth-Serving Organizations

Working with youth is one of the most important jobs there is. Professional youth workers help young people become healthy and productive adolescents and grow into adulthood by focusing on assets and building caring relationships. For over fifteen years, Marion County Commission on Youth (MCCOY) has provided a wide range of learning and networking opportunities for youth development professionals and youth-serving organizations. To continue drive this effort MCCOY has hired Shaunette Byers, Community Initiatives Coordinator, to lead both the Learning Network and Youth Program Quality Improvement/Assessment (YPQA/I) initiatives.

Read full article.

Everyday Champion: Wanda Spann Roddy

This story is a part of our Everyday Champions series. Helping youth succeed takes commitment and action from our whole community. Everyday Champions are people who are committed and who act in small and big ways to support youth in central Indiana. Do you know someone who you think would make a great Champion for Youth? Click here to get started.

While the community has focused on reducing teen pregnancy, the fact remains that many teens in our community do get pregnant. Future Promises educates and advocates for pregnant and parenting teens, improving their health and life outcomes.

What is your profession or vocation? By education, I am a pediatric/adolescent nurse practitioner. After many years being a nurse, then becoming a nurse practitioner, I have had the great opportunity to take the knowledge and experience and my love for adolescent reproductive health to develop a comprehensive program for pregnant and parenting teens called “Future Promises – A Program for pregnant and parenting teens”.

How are you an Everyday Champion for Youth?
While teen pregnancy prevention advocates continue to place much needed attention on reducing teen pregnancy and teen birth rates, little emphasis has been placed on providing services for teens that are already pregnant and/or who have become parents. In an effort to address this gap, everyday I work hard at improving services, educating and advocating for the special needs of pregnant and parenting teens in order to improve their health and life outcomes and those of their children.

What impact do you hope to make on youth?
I hope that the work that I do, the young lives that I touch – even just everyday – demonstrates to youth that there are adults in this world that sees a promising future for them and will advocate and support them, either directly or indirectly, as they work to reach their dreams and their goals.

What’s the one thing that you wish an adult had told you when you were a young person? As I recall, when I was younger, I surrounded myself with positive people that gave me a lot of good advise and support. So I don’t know of any one thing that I wished an adult had told me. However, the two things that was said to me that I have never forgotten and continues to nudge me are

An 8th grade English teacher said – “You will never be good in English – not like your sister”

The Nursing School Dean told me that “… maybe you should change your major because you aren’t going to make it through nursing school or be a good nurse”.

It’s a good thing that I didn’t take to heart either of those negative comments –thanks to the supportive people around me and my courage and determination to prove them wrong. I frequently write long papers – mostly grants and make many public presentations with excellent feedback. I successfully graduated from nursing school, became a great nurse, received a graduate nursing degree with honors and have won awards for the work that I do. But yet those comments still haunt me 30 to 35 years later. Adults never know the impact of what they say to young people – so it should always be positive and show support.

What do you want to do next to support youth?
As I prepare for my next phase of life – retirement – I hope to spend these next few years preparing myself to be able to train others on developing youth programs that work. I have learned a lot over the past 30 years on youth development and program development. I have had lots of success developing a wide range of youth programs, particularly the “Future Promises Program” and I want to give young professionals who desire to work with youth, the skills and training that I have acquired that has made a difference in the lives of youth.

Closing of Youth Emergency Services (YES) Leaves a Gaping Hole in Central Indiana’s Early Intervention & Prevention Efforts

By Shanna Malott

On December 31, 2009 a valuable service in Marion County will be closing its doors; what will happen to the children, youth and families who will no longer be able to walk through those doors?

Youth Emergency Services (YES) provides what YES Program Director John Kennedy calls, "pre-system, in person, crisis care, twenty-four/seven, without an appointment, adjudication or diagnosis!" These services are available to provide comfort and safety to children and families during crisis or to intervene before the situation becomes a crisis. Now who will provide these services? Department of Child Services (DCS) Director James Payne is adamant that DCS will pick up the ball and step in to provide the services that have been provided by YES for the past 11 years. What Director Payne fails to recognize is that YES equals Early Intervention and Prevention while DCS equals Treatment. YES is there to prevent children and families from entering the child welfare system or to minimize their involvement with the system as much as possible. DCS IS the system and is meant to provide treatment after the crisis. Children and families historically do not trust the system... but they trust YES! Read full article.

Video a video about how Youth Emergency Services works in the lives of children in our community.

If you would like to contact DCS about these changes, you can write to: Indiana Department of Child Services, Attn, James Payne, Director,402 W. Washington Street, Indianapolis, IN 46204.
Go to the DCS website for addition contact info.

Everyday Champion: Rebekah Mazanowski

This story is a part of our Everyday Champions series. Helping youth succeed takes commitment and action from our whole community. Everyday Champions are people who are committed and who act in small and big ways to support youth in central Indiana. Do you know someone who you think would make a great Champion for Youth? Click here to get started.

We're excited to feature Rebekah Mazanowski in this edition of Everyday Champions. Rebekah, a Parent Liaison at Howe Community High School, is also the sister of Natalie Mazanowski, MCCOY's Communications Director. Rebekah appreciates the role that her parents and the community have had in helping her develop into the person she is today. Growing up in a large family, she understands that parents and families need the support of a strong and healthy community.

What is your profession or vocation?
I am a 2007 graduate of IUPUI with a degree in Sociology. I am currently the Parent Liaison for IPS school 420; Thomas Carr Howe Community High School. My job is to communicate with parents at home and within the school. I focus on increasing parent involvement in order to improve the chance of student success.

How are you an everyday Champion for Youth?
Working in a school and interacting on a daily basis with kids and teens enables me to visualize the things that are most beneficial to high school students today. Participation in sports and school activities inevitably gives kids a sense of purpose and accomplishment. I organize activities and club opportunities for the students. Additionally, parent involvement is essential to a child’s success. I facilitate workshops within the school strictly for parents. The workshops address ways for parents to help their child or they provide information and resources for parents to incorporate into their parenting role.

What impact do you hope to make on youth?
I hope to impact the students through parent involvement and/or parent interest in the child. Educating parents will directly effect youth. The more I can help a parent by providing knowledge and resources, the better off a child will be.

What is one thing you wish an adult had told you when you were a young person?
I think so much about life is figuring it out on your own, but I think it is good to tell young people to be explorative, try new things and venture out of comfort zones when thinking about future goals and educational plans. Think big and plan accordingly.

What do you want to do next to support youth?
I will continue my work with the Indianapolis Public School system. I host family reading nights every month at the school. I have noticed in the past that kids really enjoy discussing their most current read, whether it is for school or for pleasure. I would like to get some type of book club going where kids are free to read and discuss the books that they enjoy.