TAG in Action: Palm Beach County Birth to 22 Initiative 

As part of its national call to action, Adolescent Health, Think, Act, Grow® (TAG), the Office 

of Adolescent Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has identified a 

number of successful strategies for improving adolescent health throughout the country. One 

organization in Palm Beach County, Florida serves young people through community collaboration and 

youth engagement. 

The Goal

Birth to 22: United for Brighter Futures (Birth to 22) supports the healthy growth, 

development, and education of children and youth prenatal through young adulthood, so 

that they can graduate from high school and succeed in life. 

The Game 

Plan

Birth to 22: United for Brighter Futures is a coalition of more than 60 community partners 

in Palm Beach County, Florida committed to supporting children and youth to help them 

become successful adults. Birth to 22 was established following a 2013 Youth Symposium

that brought together elected and community leaders. During the event, youth-serving 

organizations realized that they needed a common agenda with actionable goals to 

support children and youth. As a result, the participants created the Birth to 22 initiative.

Birth to 22 leadership knew that they needed to leverage the existing coalitions and

authentically engage the county’s diverse communities. Leadership decided to utilize the

Forum for Youth Investment’s collective impact approach and began their planning by 

holding several community conversations. A unique feature of this process is that youth

were trained and co-facilitated the conversations. More than 700 community members 

and youth participated in the conversations and six common themes emerged: economics 

and access; parenting and home environment; social/emotional challenges; educational

supports; health and wellness; and community stressors. The work culminated in the Birth 

to 22 Youth Master Plan entitled “Strengthening the Steps to Success,” which identifies 

common outcomes, data collection, and action steps for the community. 

The 

Winning 

Plays

Birth to 22 engaged youth throughout the planning process and continues to do so. Tammy 

Fields, the Palm Beach County Youth Services Department Director, shared that, “It was 

very effective to have youth facilitate the community conversations. We didn’t want to

lose that momentum. We started a Youth Advisory Council but the youth didn’t like that 

name. They suggested Future Leaders United for Change, which is much better! The group 

is comprised of youth that receive our services. They are helping guide our work. For 

example, the youth explained that they felt guilty getting food for themselves at school 

when their whole family needed to be fed, so they often refused. As a result, our hunger 

initiative is providing youth with extra food, such as rice or pasta, which can be stretched 

to feed the whole family. Over and over, they are showing us how relatively small 

oversights on our part can dramatically impact youth’s ability or willingness to benefit from 

our services.”

Learn 

More 

Birth to 22 Initiative

http://pbcbirthto22.com/

Office of Adolescent Health | Website: http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/TAG Twitter: @TeenHealthGov Email: TAGTEAM@hhs.gov