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## Other Youth Topics

## Breadcrumb

            -  Youth Topics 
            -           Integrating Positive Youth Development into Programs      

# Integrating Positive Youth Development into Programs

PYD can be integrated into any youth development program. First and foremost, all youth-serving organizations should work toward assuring that young people have the chance to engage in positive relationships and interactions that can help them develop into healthy and productive adults. PYD strategies also include providing youth with access to experiences that help them learn healthy and valued behaviors, expectations, and principles. The following model was developed by Jacquelynne Eccles (2011) and describes the types of opportunities that should be provided to young people and how these opportunities help young people develop into happy, healthy, and secure young adults.

*Eccles, J. (2011).f Community-based programs for youth. Presented at National Academies of Science Conference: 10 Year Follow-Up to “Community Programs to Promote Youth Development.”*

A comprehensive review of the research literature focused on community programs for youth,1 identified key environmental factors and experiences that have been found to promote PYD. These factors and experiences are recommended by experts to be integrated into PYD programs. They include:

**Physical and Psychological Safety**

A program should provide ground rules that are developed, agreed upon, and posted by the youth participants. Adequately trained staff members who understand and respect youth are essential to providing a safe space for a positive program experience. A program should also include youth and adults who are trained in team building and can understand and recognize symptoms of cliques and find alternative means for using group and team-building exercises.

**Appropriate Structure**

A program should provide appropriate youth-to-adult ratios for supervision, a system for ensuring that youth are welcomed when they arrive, and a balance for different learning styles in programmatic activities.

**Supportive Relationships**

Programs should create opportunities where youth share their interests and work collaboratively with their peers. Staff should be trained in handling conflict, recognizing symptoms of withdrawal, and understanding how to engage youth without singling them out.

**Opportunities to Belong**

A program should provide opportunities for youth to be engaged in small group activities based on interest. Structured team building should also be provided to ensure that all youth have a chance to get acquainted. For the youth to feel involved, opportunities for sharing need to be incorporated into each activity.

**Positive Social Norms**

Programs should engage youth and program staff in creating a respectful environment that involves a respect for diversity and culture in activities.

**Opportunities to Make a Difference**

A program should engage youth in exploring career and workforce opportunities, provide occasions for goal setting, and create opportunities for youth to make a difference in service learning or peer support.

**Opportunities for Skill Development**

Programs should provide opportunities for youth to master and apply skills and engage the youth in determining choices toward progression of new levels of learning.

**Integration of Family, School, and Community Efforts**

A program needs to incorporate ways to engage parents and/or guardians, staff, and youth participants through family activities, newsletters, websites, and program policies. Programs should be aware of when youth are in school or out of school and plan accordingly to support youth and their families in extended programming opportunities. Additionally, programs should be mindful of certain populations such as disconnected youth, that may be more difficult to engage and how best to get them involved in programming.

## Resources

**Eight Successful Youth Engagement Approaches**This webpage content from the Office of Adolescent Health offers approaches and resources for successful youth engagement including topics such as: youth councils, youth governance, youth serving on boards, youth voice, youth advocacy, and youth organizing.

**Embracing a “Youth Welfare” System: A Guide to Capacity Building**This guide focuses on challenges that state child welfare agencies face when working with youth. To address these challenges, the guide presents the Youth Welfare approach, which outlines how agencies can shift from a child-focused system to a youth-focused system by implementing practices that support youth and their needs. Agencies and others working with youth in care can access the complete guide or download the tools, which include a graphic and several exercises to build staff knowledge and skills in youth welfare.

**Family and Youth Services Bureau Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services**The mission of the Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) is to provide national leadership on youth and family issues. FYSB promotes positive outcomes for children, youth, and families by supporting a wide range of comprehensive services and collaborations at the local, tribal, state, and national levels. Grant programs supported by FYSB include the Mentoring Children of Prisoners Program, Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs, and Family Violence Prevention and Services.

**National Initiative to Improve Adolescent Health**The National Initiative to Improve Adolescent Health is a collaborative effort to improve the health, safety, and well-being of adolescents and young adults ages 10–24. The initiative was launched and is led by Division of Adolescent and School Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration and is supported by a group of partner organizations. A range of resources, including a guide for state agencies and local organizations, is available on this website.

**Positive Youth Development Resource Manual (PDF, 210 pages)**Developed by the ACT for Youth and the Upstate Center for Excellence at Cornell University, this manual provides resources and tools for community members and professionals to help promote PYD in their communities and assist organizational and community change.

**Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Center**This is a centralized national resource for Runaway and Homeless Youth grantees funded by the Family and Youth Services Bureau at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Training and technical assistance are directed at assisting the grantees to engage in continuous quality improvement of their services and to build their capacity to effectively serve runaway and homeless youth.

**Science of PYD****(PDF, 1 page)**This fact sheet from the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides a brief history of PYD's roots, a look at PYD today, and details about how the 4-H program serves as a model for the practice of PYD.

## References

1 Eccles & Gootman, 2002

## Other Resources on this Topic

### Agencies 

                          - AmeriCorps
                          - AmeriCorps
                          - National Institute of Food and Agriculture

### Announcements 

                          - 2023/2024 Prevention Resource Guide
                          - Building Staff Co-Regulation to Support Healthy Relationships in Youth: A Guide for Practitioners
                          - Department of Justice Awards More Than $136 Million to Support Youth and Reform the Juvenile Justice System
                          - Department of Justice Awards Nearly $105 Million to Protect Children from Exploitation, Trauma, and Abuse
                          - Domestic Violence Awareness Month
                          - Help Youth Reach their Full Potential during National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month (NTPPM)
                          - Justice Department Announces $21.72 Million to Reduce Sexual and Domestic Violence on Campus, Support Children and Youth, and Engage Men and Boys as Allies
                          - Measuring Co-Regulation: A Draft Tool for Observing Educators in Youth-Serving Programs
                          - National Adoption Month 2022
                          - NCER Awards Three Additional Education Research Grants
                          - Observance: 2023 National Adoption Month
                          - OJJDP’s Fiscal Year 2021 Discretionary Awards Total Nearly $344 Million
                          - Permanency for Youth on Their Own Terms
                          - Redesigned National Adoption Month Website
                          - Report: Building Co-Regulation Capacity to Support Positive Development for Youth with Foster Care Experience
                          - Report: Dual Language Programs
                          - Report: Partnerships to Align Education and Careers
                          - Report: Promoting Healthy Futures: Afterschool Provides the Supports Parents Want for Children’s Well-Being
                          - Report: Surgeon General’s Advisory on Protecting Youth Mental Health
                          - Report: Youth Apprenticeship in the United States
                          - Resource: 2022 Adoption Month Outreach Toolkit
                          - Resource: A Look Inside Sharing Power in Child Welfare: A Podcast
                          - Resource: A Tool for Youth Engagement and Empowerment
                          - Resource: Activate: The Center to Bring Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Research to Youth-Supporting Professionals
                          - Resource: Advances in Supporting Kinship Caregivers — Part 5  Agencies and departments: Department of Health and Human Ser
                          - Resource: AFFIRM Caregiver: Affirmative Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Caregivers of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning (LGBTQ+) Populations
                          - Resource: Affirming and Supporting LGBTQ Children and Youth in Child Welfare
                          - Resource: Ask Youth Challenge
                          - Resource: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
                          - Resource: Behavioral Health Beneficiary Survey
                          - Resource: Biliteracy Seals in a Large Urban District in New Mexico: Who Earns Them and How Do They Impact College Outcomes?
                          - Resource: Building Infrastructure for Surveillance of Adverse and Positive Childhood Experiences: Integrated, Multimethod Approaches to Generate Data for Prevention Action
                          - Resource: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Investments in Adverse Childhood Experience Prevention Efforts
                          - Resource: Change and Implementation in Practice
                          - Resource: Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) Webpage
                          - Resource: Child Exploitation  
                          - Resource: Co-Regulation in Human Services
                          - Resource: Co-Regulation in Practice Series -- Strategies for Practitioners Who Serve Youth Aged 14-24
                          - Resource: Co-regulation: What It Is and Why it Matters Video
                          - Resource: Comprehensive Systems Integration for Adolescent and Young Adult Health (CSI-AYAH)
                          - Resource: Conducting Implementation Research in Impact Studies of Education Interventions
                          - Resource: Dear Adult Leaders: #ListenToYouth
                          - Resource: Dear Colleague Letter on Addressing the Impacts of Parent and Caregiver Loss on Children
                          - Resource: Dear Colleague Letter: End to Corporal Punishment in Schools
                          - Resource: Department of Justice Awards Nearly $105 Million To Protect Children From Exploitation, Trauma and Abuse
                          - Resource: Developing a Graduate Mental Health Internship Program
                          - Resource: Diversity, Racial Equity, and Inclusion in Child Welfare: Our Shared Vocabulary 
                          - Resource: Encouraging Families to Visit a Literacy Website: A Randomized Study of the Impact of Email and Text Message Communications
                          - Resource: Essentials for Parenting Teens
                          - Resource: Factsheet on Improving Access and Care for Youth Mental Health and Substance Use Conditions
                          - Resource: Family-Based Justice Center
                          - Resource: Family-Based Justice Center
                          - Resource: Financial Literacy Activities
                          - Resource: Good Behavior Game
                          - Resource: Guides for How to Incorporate Coregulation with Older Youth in Foster Care
                          - Resource: Guiding Principles on School Discipline
                          - Resource: Having the Normalcy Conversation
                          - Resource: Health Equity Guiding Principles for Inclusive Communication
                          - Resource: Healthy Native Youth Community of Practice Sessions
                          - Resource: How to Help Children and Teens Manage Their Stress
                          - Resource: Interactive e-learning Tool for Strengths Conversations
                          - Resource: Interconnecting Mental Health and Behavioral Support Improves School Safety
                          - Resource: It’s All Relative: Supporting Kinship Care Discussion Guides and Video Series
                          - Resource: Judicial Leadership for Community-Based Alternatives to Juvenile Secure Confinement
                          - Resource: LGBTQ+ Youth Engagement Virtually and In-Person
                          - Resource: Maintaining Cultural Connections  
                          - Resource: National Guidelines for Child and Youth Behavioral Health Crisis Care
                          - Resource: Newly-Redesigned YE4C
                          - Resource: One-Fifth of Young Adults Have Tried Prescription Drugs Off-Script
                          - Resource: Our Goals, Our Lives Video Series
                          - Resource: PAF Program Videos
                          - Resource: Parenting Your Adopted Teenager
                          - Resource: Permanency Planning with Youth
                          - Resource: Planning Tool for Youth Engagement
                          - Resource: Podcast Series: Collecting Data on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression
                          - Resource: Practical Guide for Implementing a Trauma-Informed Approach
                          - Resource: Practical Measurement for Continuous Improvement in the Classroom: A Toolkit for Educators
                          - Resource: Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Training
                          - Resource: Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Online Training for Faith, Spiritual, and Religious Communities
                          - Resource: Preventing Childhood Adversity Through Economic Support and Social Norm Strategies
                          - Resource: Preventing Youth Hate Crimes & Identity-Based Bullying Fact Sheet
                          - Resource: Prevention Profiles: Take Five - Jeff Coady, Psy.D.
                          - Resource: Probation Reform: A Toolkit for State Advisory Groups (SAGs)
                          - Resource: Problematic Sexual Behavior of Children and Youth (PSB-CY): Clinical Assessment and Treatment Overview Training Courses New Online Training Courses to Address Youth with Problematic Sexual Behavior
                          - Resource: Promoting Resilience and Emotional Health for Children, Youth, & Families with Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs)
                          - Resource: Reconnecting Youth Project
                          - Resource: Red Ribbon Patch Program
                          - Resource: Reducing Homelessness Among Young People Transitioning from Foster Care
                          - Resource: Reimagining School Safety: A Guide for Schools and Districts
                          - Resource: Resilience, Opportunity, Safety, Education, Strength (ROSES) Program
                          - Resource: Responding to the Current Youth Mental Health Crisis and Preventing the Next One
                          - Resource: Responding to Types of Child Abuse or Neglect
                          - Resource: Seed Sisters 4 Part “Strong Roots” Series, Part 1
                          - Resource: Self-Regulation and Toxic Stress Series
                          - Resource: Services to Support Children Living in Kinship and Nonrelative Foster Care 2008-2009
                          - Resource: Social Development
                          - Resource: Social Influencers of Health and Education Needs Assessment: A Pathway for School Health and Mental Health Professionals
                          - Resource: Standing Together to Prevent Bullying
                          - Resource: Starter Guide: Trauma-Informed Care for Adolescents in Primary Care
                          - Resource: State Survey Analysis
                          - Resource: Strategies for Involving Parents in School Health
                          - Resource: Strengthening Kinship Care and Prioritizing Equitable Support for Kinship Caregivers
                          - Resource: Strengthening Kinship Care and Prioritizing Equitable Support for Kinship Caregivers
                          - Resource: Substance Use Treatment Programs
                          - Resource: Suicide Prevention Resource for Action
                          - Resource: Support for Prosecutors Who Work with Youth
                          - Resource: Supporting and Responding to Students’ Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Needs: Evidence-Based Practices for Educators
                          - Resource: Supporting Decision Making Recording
                          - Resource: The National Partnership for Student Success
                          - Resource: Tip Sheets on Everyday Parenting Topics
                          - Resource: Tobacco-Free Schools Toolkit
                          - Resource: Toolkit for Embracing a "Youth Welfare" System: A Guide to Capacity Building
                          - Resource: Transporting Students Experiencing Homelessness
                          - Resource: Trauma-Informed Care and Fostering Resilience Video Collection
                          - Resource: Trends in Youth Arrests for Violent Crimes
                          - Resource: U.S. Outlying Area Public Schools’ Experiences with COVID-19 - September 2022
                          - Resource: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection
                          - Resource: Using Federal Funds for Summer Learning and Afterschool: A Guide for Providers, School Districts, and Intermediaries
                          - Resource: Voices of Young Workers
                          - Resource: What Does an Effective Support System Look Like?
                          - Resource: Why are Drugs So Hard to Quit?
                          - Resource: Working Virtually With Families of LGBTQ+ Youth.
                          - Resource: Working with Military Families as They Pursue Adoption of Children and Youth
                          - Resource: Youth Acceptance Project
                          - Resource: Youth Advisory Councils
                          - Resource: Youth Development Across the Federal Government: A Thought Leader Conversation with Cheri Hoffman
                          - Resource: Youth Justice Action Month (YJAM) Toolkit
                          - Resource: Youth Reentry and Family Engagement
                          - Resource: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System 2021 Data
                          - Resource: Youth Voices
                          - Second Chance Month: April 2023
                          - Self-Regulation Training Approaches and Resources to Improve Staff Capacity for Implementing Healthy Marriage Programs for Youth (SARHM): Final Report
                          - Share with Youth: Federal Internship Portal
                          - Share with Youth: Internships at the Executive Office of the President (EOP)
                          - Share with Youth: NASA Internship Programs
                          - Share with Youth: Substance Use Prevention Resources for Youth and College Students
                          - Share with Youth: U.S. Department of State (DOS) Student Internship Program
                          - Share with Youth: Where to Next? Exploring STEM Careers
                          - U.S. Department of Education Creates National Parents and Families Engagement Council to Help Ensure Pandemic Recovery Efforts Meet Students’ Needs
                          - Webinar Recording: Building Parent Leadership and Power to Support Faster, Lasting Reunification and Prevent System Involvement
                          - Webinar Recording: Don’t Leave Us Out: Tapping ARPA for Older Youth
                          - Webinar Recording: Empowering Youth Finding Points of Connection
                          - Webinar Recording: Public Health and STEM with the CDC
                          - Webinar Recording: Social Science Research and the Mental Health Crisis in Minority Youths and Adolescents
                          - Webinar Recording: Supporting Students in Effective Transitions
                          - Webinar: Participatory Systems Change for Equity: Centering Community Wisdom and Collective Action to Transform Child-, Youth-, and Family-Serving Systems
                          - Well-Being on Campus: The Role of Collegiate Recovery Programs
                          - Youth Partnership: A Call to Action for State Advisory Groups (SAGs)
                          - Youth Voices Have Moved to YE4C

### Collaboration Profiles 

                          - About the Program
                          - Iowa Collaboration for Youth Development (ICYD) Council
                          - National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS)
                          - Navicate
                          - Partnership for Results
                          - Promise Neighborhoods
                          - Second Chances - Norfolk, VA Sheriff's Office
                          - USDA and the Military: Positive Youth Development
                          - Youth ChalleNGe Program
                          - Youth M.O.V.E. National: Making a Difference through Youth-Adult Partnerships
                          - Youth M.O.V.E. National: Making a Difference through Youth-Adult Partnerships
                          - YouthGo.gov

### Departments 

                          - 4-H Military Partnerships
                          - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

### Feature Articles 

                          - A Positive Youth Development Research Agenda
                          - Adventure Central
                          - AmeriCorps NCCC: Strengthening Communities and Developing Leaders
                          - Archived Webinar: Youth Don’t Need to Be Fixed: Strategic Framing for Messaging on PYD
                          - Call for Nominations: Youth Listening Session
                          - Engineering students mentor at middle school with STARBASE
                          - Healthy Youth Development through Self-Regulation and Co-Regulation
                          - How much do you know about...4-H and Positive Youth Development?
                          - Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs Develops Common Language on Positive Youth Development
                          - Just Launched! Redesigned YE4C
                          - Minnesota's Support Systems for Rural Homeless Youth Program
                          - National Youth Listening Tour
                          - Pathways for Youth: Strategic Plan for Federal Collaboration
                          - Portland Kids Learn about Life and Basketball at the Hoopin' It Up Camp
                          - Promoting Positive Adolescent Health Behaviors and Outcomes: Thriving in the 21st Century
                          - Reports and Recommendations for Core Components
                          - Resources to Support Youth Who Have Lost a Caregiver
                          - SAMHSA’s Guidance — Strategies, Tools, and Tips for Supportive and Meaningful Youth Engagement in Federal Government-Sponsored Meetings and Events
                          - Secretary Duncan Hosts First Meeting with National Council of Young Leaders
                          - The Changing Transition to Adulthood: A TAG Talk
                          - The CITY Project
                          - The Crisis of Connection for Adolescent Boys: A TAG Talk
                          - The Power of the Adolescent Brain: A TAG Talk
                          - Washington State Youth Take Civic Activism To New Level
                          - YE4C Accepting Applications for the Editorial Board
                          - YE4C Responds to Current Events Affecting Youth
                          - Youth Engaged 4 Change
                          - Youth Speakers Share Their Hopes for the Future

### Programs 

                          - 21st Century Community Learning Centers
                          - 4-H Afterschool
                          - 4-H Youth Development Program
                          - Administration for Native Americans
                          - Children, Youth, and Families at Risk
                          - Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB)
                          - National 4-H Headquarters
                          - National Guard Youth Challenge Program
                          - Neighborhood Networks
                          - Passport in Time
                          - Preserve America Stewards
                          - Promise Neighborhoods
                          - YouthBuild

### Publications 

                          - Advancing the Self-Sufficiency and Well-Being of At-Risk Youth: A Conceptual Framework
                          - Communication Skills Building for Parents of Preteen Girls
                          - Framework for Advancing the Well-being and Self-Sufficiency of At-Risk Youth
                          - Learn More About Positive Youth Development
                          - Make a Friend-Be a Peer Mentor
                          - NCFY Voices: The Youth Dreamers Think Big
                          - PEPNet: Connecting Juvenile Offenders to Education and Employment
                          - Public/Private Ventures' Evaluation of Faith-Based Programs
                          - Synthesis of Research and Resources to Support at-Risk Youth
                          - The Effective Management of Juvenile Sex Offenders in the Community
                          - The Guide to Community Preventive Services
                          - The Revolution of Responsibility

### Resources 

                          - 2015-2016 E3! Ambassadors
                          - Community Youth Mapping: A Tool for Youth Participation and Program Design
                          - Resource: SAMHSA’S Youth Engagement Guidance
                          - Six Tips for Increasing Meaningful Youth Engagement in Programs
                          - Six Ways to Successfully Engage Youth in Peacebuilding
                          - Young AAPI Leaders Convene for the Fifth White House AAPI Youth Forum
                          - Youth Advisory Councils
                          - Youth Engagement Community of Practice
                          - Youth Engagement in Development: Effective Approaches and Action-Oriented Recommendations for the Field

### Technical Assistance 

                          - Cooperative Extension System
                          - National Training and Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health
                          - Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Centers
                          - Underage Drinking Training Center
                          - You For Youth

### Tools & Guides 

                          - 10 Things Americans Can Do to Combat Summer Reading Loss and Childhood Obesity
                          - 3 Bold Steps for School Community Change
                          - AmeriCorps: National Mentoring Month
                          - Children, Youth, and Families Education and Research Network
                          - National Service-Learning Clearinghouse
                          - Putting Positive Youth Development Into Practice: A Resource Guide
                          - Resource:  Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Youth Engagement Guidance
                          - Resource: Top 10 Tips for Engaging with Young People
                          - Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Centers - Community of Practice
                          - Share with Youth: Game Changers: Establishing a Youth Advisory Council
                          - Youth Leadership Toolkit: Branding and Logos
                          - Youth Leadership Toolkit: Member Outreach
                          - Youth Leadership Toolkit: Strategic Sharing
                          - Youth Leadership Toolkit: Travel Guide
                          - Youth Leadership Toolkit: Youth Engagement

### Training Resources 

                          - Introduction to Positive Youth Development

### Videos & Podcasts 

                          - International Day of the Girl
                          - Keep in Touch
                          - Resource: Youth Create!: A Collection of Youth-Created Content
                          - Webcast Archive: Make the Connection: How Positive Youth Development Offers Promise for Teen Health and Teen Pregnancy Prevention
                          - Youth Workers: When Did You Make the Biggest Difference in a Youth’s Life?

### Webinars & Presentations 

                          - Youth Development Across the Federal Government: A Thought Leader Conversation with Cheri Hoffman
                          - YouthPower Learning Webinar: Engaging Youth in Research
                          - YouthPower Learning Webinar: Makerspaces - A Tool for Youth Engagement

### Websites 

                          - Resource: YouthPower – What Works
                          - Families, Youth, and Communities
                          - Museums and Libraries: Engaging America's Youth
                          - National Mentoring Resource Center
                          - Positive Youth Development
                          - Resource: Money Lessons for Kids of All Ages Website
                          - Share with Youth: Create a “my Social Security” Account
                          - United We Serve
                          - YouthLead

### Youth Topics 

                          - Positive Youth Development

## Youth Briefs

How Individualized Education Program (IEP) Transition Planning Makes a Difference for Youth with Disabilities
Youth who receive special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 2004) and especially young adults of transition age, should be involved in planning for life after high school as early as possible and no later than age 16. Transition services should stem from the individual youth’s needs and strengths, ensuring that planning takes into account his or her interests, preferences, and desires for the future.

Youth Transitioning to Adulthood: How Holding Early Leadership Positions Can Make a Difference
Research links early leadership with increased self-efficacy and suggests that leadership can help youth to develop decision making and interpersonal skills that support successes in the workforce and adulthood. In addition, young leaders tend to be more involved in their communities, and have lower dropout rates than their peers. Youth leaders also show considerable benefits for their communities, providing valuable insight into the needs and interests of young people

How Trained Service Professionals and Self-Advocacy Makes a Difference for Youth with Mental Health, Substance Abuse, or Co-occurring Issues
Statistics reflecting the number of youth suffering from mental health, substance abuse, and co-occurring disorders highlight the necessity for schools, families, support staff, and communities to work together to develop targeted, coordinated, and comprehensive transition plans for young people with a history of mental health needs and/or substance abuse.

Young Adults Formerly in Foster Care: Challenges and Solutions
Nearly 30,000 youth aged out of foster care in Fiscal Year 2009, which represents nine percent of the young people involved in the foster care system that year. This transition can be challenging for youth, especially youth who have grown up in the child welfare system.

Coordinating Systems to Support Transition Age Youth with Mental Health Needs
Research has demonstrated that as many as one in five children/youth have a diagnosable mental health disorder. Read about how coordination between public service agencies can improve treatment for these youth.

Civic Engagement Strategies for Transition Age Youth
Civic engagement has the potential to empower young adults, increase their self-determination, and give them the skills and self-confidence they need to enter the workforce. Read about one youth’s experience in AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC).

## Main navigation

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### Announcements

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### Collaboration Profiles

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Second Chances - Norfolk, VA Sheriff's Office

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### Feature Articles

Healthy Youth Development through Self-Regulation and Co-Regulation

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### Publications

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The Guide to Community Preventive Services

Synthesis of Research and Resources to Support at-Risk Youth

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Youth Engagement in Development: Effective Approaches and Action-Oriented Recommendations for the Field

Six Ways to Successfully Engage Youth in Peacebuilding

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