Youth Development and Leadership— Youth Service Practitioner Section

As a youth service practitioner, your job is to make certain that all youth, including youth with disabilities, have the supports and opportunities to develop into responsible caring individuals. Your responsibilities may include developing youth development or youth leadership components, facilitating program activities, assessing a young person’s competencies, and/or connecting youth to opportunities and resources that will help them reach developmental goals. By acquiring a basic understanding of youth development and leadership, and their intended outcomes and program activities, you will be equipped to help all youth become better prepared for adolescence, the workforce, and adulthood.

All youth need youth development and leadership activities in five development areas, regardless of whether they have disabilities. Individually-focused supports, services, and opportunities are needed for all youth to be successful, including individual supports and modifications for youth with disabilities. Just as all youth demonstrate growth in alternative ways and reach the various stages of development at different times, youth with disabilities can be expected to develop in different ways and at varying paces.

Questions

1. How do I use youth development and leadership in individualized service planning?

When helping a young person develop an individualized service plan, start by identifying the developmental outcomes already reached as well as the supports and services already in place. Consider the different ways you can identify outcomes such as

• discussions with the young person,
• observation of activities and behaviors, and
• review of relevant information such as school or employment records or assessments and tests.

For example, ask a young person about his/her career interests and the options s/he has thought about or explored. The response, can often determine if additional career exploration is needed. Observing a young person’s interactions with peers or other adults may help determine the presence of strong interpersonal skills such as actively listening and effectively communicating with others. By consulting school records or the results of a skills assessment, you can determine if a young person has achieved a basic aptitude in math and reading.

Upon completion of the above, help the young person recognize his/her strengths and assets, the outcomes already reached, and the areas in need of growth and learning. Review and discuss ways that the young person can develop goals and help him/her determine realistic steps for achieving them. Help the young person create an individualized service plan that includes youth development and leadership activities that match his/her goals and relate to his/her interests. For example, if a young person needs to strengthen his/her interpersonal skills and enjoys science, suggest that s/he tutor another young person who is struggling with science. In the process of tutoring, s/he will be able to practice interpersonal skills while focusing on something s/he enjoys.

As a part of the plan, consider the supports and services the young person has in place such as transportation, childcare, mentoring, and accommodations. Note whether the youth needs additional supports and services to reach his/her outcomes and whether these can be provided by your organization. In some instances, you may need to connect the young person to other organizations that provide the needed supports and services.

Once the plan is in place, use it to track progress toward the desired outcomes by periodically reviewing the plan with the young person and discussing what s/he has learned and experienced. As the young person achieves a new outcome, recognize and celebrate the accomplishment and revise the goals and plan as needed.

2. What should I consider when selecting and preparing adult and peer mentors for youth with disabilities?

Youth can be matched with a variety of individuals, with and without disabilities, in mentoring relationships. Having a mentor with a disability can be especially valuable for young people with disabilities; however, it is not always possible, and there are other factors that are important in selecting a mentor.

The mentoring experience needs to be centered on the young person. Before making a mentoring match, ask the young person what s/he hopes to gain from the relationship, what qualities and traits s/he hopes to find in a mentor, and what s/he hopes to offer the mentor. The young person may want a mentor in a certain profession or someone who enjoys a similar pastime or hobby. Then pair the young person with a mentor who matches these interests or traits.

3. What is involved in the training of mentors?

All mentors, regardless of whether they have a disability, should be appropriately screened and trained. Screening should include an interview, as well as a review of references, and a background check. Training for mentors should include basic principles of youth development and youth interaction. This is necessary to ensure that the mentor approaches the relationship with an appreciation for the young person’s strengths and goals and with a focus on building on the young person’s existing capabilities and helping him to address his developmental needs. Mentors should understand that mentoring is a “two-way street” – they may learn as much from the young person as the young person learns from them!

All mentors should receive training on considerations for mentoring youth with and without disabilities. This training can help mentors develop an awareness of and sensitivity to the experiences and perspectives of youth with disabilities. Mentors should appreciate and encourage the interests and goals of all young people, including youth with disabilities.

At the beginning of the mentoring relationship, both the youth and the mentors should be encouraged to

1. Communicate with one another about their expectations for the mentoring relationship. You may need to help both the young person and the mentor develop realistic expectations before the relationship is initiated.
2. Clearly define the responsibilities to each other and the relationship. For example, if the mentor makes the first call to the young person, the young person is responsible for returning the mentor’s call within a reasonable period of time. If the young person shares a list of his goals with the mentor, the mentor is responsible for providing feedback on each of the goals. These responsibilities should be spelled out early on in the relationship.
3. Make a plan for communication. The young person and the mentor may decide to talk by phone once a week at the same time or communicate regularly by e-mail between in-person meetings. They should discuss and agree upon ways to establish and maintain regular communication to determine the arrangement that best fits the relationship.
4. Address logistical issues, such a convenient and accessible place to meet, and any transportation assistance, if any, the young person may need. Your program may have guidelines about where and how mentors and youth meetings should occur. For example, youth may not be permitted to ride in the mentors’ personal vehicles or may be required to meet in public places.
5. Participate in activities that promote relationship-building. You may want to provide some pre-planned, fun-filled activities for all mentors and youth at the beginning of the program, such as bowling, attending a sports event, or having a pizza party, in order to encourage getting to know one another and bonding.

4. Where can I find youth development and leadership activities or curricula to use with all youth including youth with disabilities?

When selecting youth development or youth leadership activities for your program, consider the youth you serve, the program’s goals, and your organization’s capacity. For example, if the youth in your program are interested in auto mechanics, you might have them research the career potential (salary, working conditions, and industry growth) for the auto repair industry and plan a trip to visit an auto mechanics’ training facility. If your program’s goals include community improvement, youth could plan, budget, and implement a community improvement project or neighborhood clean-up day. If your building has a large auditorium or meeting space, youth could recruit employers, invite other youth programs, and hold a job fair at your site. Youth development and youth leadership activities that are integrated into your current program will be more effective than those that are unrelated “add on” activities.

It is also important to think of your program’s time, budget, and staff availability. Will youth have the time, support, and guidance needed for a successful youth leadership activity? Do you have the resources within your organization to provide youth with real leadership opportunities? Youth development and youth leadership activities take time and resources to plan well and implement effectively. Be sure there are leadership roles for all youth in your program and that planning includes accessibility and supports for all to participate fully.

NCWD/Youth has developed a list of suggested activities for each of the five areas of development (See “Areas of Development” Chart) that you can include in your youth development and leadership programs. The activities in the areas of Leading and Connecting are especially appropriate for youth leadership programs. This list is not exhaustive and you may come up with additional activities that will help youth achieve the outcomes listed in the chart. It may also be helpful to look at curriculum used by other programs. Examples are provided in the resource section.

Resources

Disability-Related Components

Advocacy Resource Centers (ARC)
http://www.thearc.org
ARC contains information and resources for serving children and adults with cognitive, intellectual, and developmental disabilities

Centers for Independent Living
http://www.virtualcil.net/cils
This website provides links to independent living centers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Organizations
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/rsa/resources.html
This website provides links to government and private resources for people with disabilities.

Mentoring

Cornell Youth and Work Program, Cornell University http://www.human.cornell.edu/youthwork/mentoring/training.html
This mentor training program is designed to help novice mentors gain expertise more quickly, this mentor training program includes sample activities, agendas and evaluation forms for delivering the training in two four-hour sessions. The materials may be adapted for use in shorter sessions or other training programs.

The National Mentoring Partnership
http://www.mentoring.org
The website contains numerous resources for mentors and program operators including research on the effectiveness of mentoring, training products, and volunteer management tools.

Public-Private Ventures (P/PV)
http://www.ppv.org
P/PV contains research and evaluations of various types of mentoring programs including one-on-one, school-based, group, and high-risk youth.

Curriculum

Fire Starter Youth Power
http://www.freechild.org/Firestarter/home.htm
The Firestarter Curriculum works with young people to educate, engage, and empower a new generation of social change leaders. The website contains resources for youth trainers and teachers.

New Jersey 4-H Leader Training Series
http://www.nj4h.rutgers.edu/volunteering/e148.html
This website contains a wealth of information from planning field trips to working with youth and their families.

Prudential Youth Leadership Institute
http://http://www.pyli.org/curriculum.html
The website includes an interactive, state-of-the-art curriculum developed by the Center for Creative Leadership containing lessons and exercises on community needs analysis, goal setting, team building, project planning, decision-making, and other leadership dynamics, and culminating in a service project.

Multi-purpose

Child Trends - What Works: Research Tools to Improve Youth Development
http://www.childtrends.org/
This work summarizes the best available research and evaluations to determine what works, what doesn't work and what are some "best bets" for anyone who designs, administers, or funds services for teens.

Community Youth Development (CYD) Journal
http://www.cydjournal.org/2002SprSum/contents.html
CYD Journal is dedicated to voicing progressive, humane, and caring approaches to the development of youth and community. It is published by the Institute for Just Communities (IJC) and the Institute for Sustainable Development, Heller School of Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University. Through this link, access the 2002 Anthology issue to download several articles on youth development and leadership.

Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development
http://http://www.theinnovationcenter.org
The Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development studies what works in youth and community organizations around the world and translates it into practical materials—training programs, tool kits, and other vehicles—to strengthen organizations, advance the field of youth development, and promote social justice.

National 4-H Council’s Creating Community Programs for Youth with Disabilities
http://www.fourhcouncil.edu/programs/disabilities/default.asp?subid=11&catid=1 This resource is designed to help youth professionals as they seek to increase the number of participants with disabilities in their programs, explore specific programming related to disability issues, and enhance the sensitivity of all to the unique needs of persons with disabilities and their potential contributions to programs.

National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth
http://www.ncfy.com
The National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth (NCFY) provides information for young people and students, parents and community members and youth service practitioners and policy makers to help support young people and families. The Clearinghouse is led by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities
http://www.nichcy.org
This national information and referral center provides information on disabilities and disability-related issues for families, educators, and other professionals.

National Training Institute for Community Youth Work (NTI)/AED
http://nti.aed.org
NTI, established by the Academy for Educational Development (AED) in 1997, strengthens the field of youth development through the preparation and professional development of youth workers—the adults who work directly with young people in a variety of settings. NTI administers training in the Advancing Youth Development curriculum.

National Youth Employment Coalition’s PEPNet online Index to Effective Practices
http://www.nyec.org/pepnet/youthdev.htm
The PEPNet (Promising and Effective Practices Network) is a "practice-based system for identifying and developing what works in youth employment and development. Youth programs can use PEPNet’s Online Index to find specific examples of effective practice used by effective programs to achieve positive outcomes for youth. PEPNet can also be used to learn about what works, document program successes, plan improvements, get recognition, and share information.

Parent Training and Information Centers
http://www.taalliance.org/PTIs.htm
Parent Training and Information Centers are located in each state, provide training and information to parents of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities and to professionals who work with children.

Search Institute
http://www.search-institute.org/
The Search Institute is an independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide leadership, knowledge, and resources to promote healthy children, youth, and communities. At the heart of the institute's work is the framework of 40 developmental assets, which are positive experiences and personal qualities that young people need to grow up healthy, caring, and responsible.

Working

PEPNet online Index to Effective Practices – Workforce Development, National Youth Employment Coalition
http://www.nyec.org/pepnet/workforcedev.htm
The PEPNet (Promising and Effective Practices Network) is a "practice-based system for identifying and developing what works in youth employment and development. Youth programs can use PEPNet’s Online Index to find specific examples of effective practice used by effective programs to achieve positive outcomes for youth. PEPNet can also be used to learn about what works, document program successes, plan improvements, get recognition, and share information.

WorkforceUSA.net
http://www.workforceusa.net
WorkforceUSA.net is designed for the day-to-day needs of workforce development practitioners in community-based organizations, community colleges, private firms, employer associations, unions, economic development organizations, One Stop Career Centers, Workforce Investment Boards and elsewhere. The site provides an extensive "virtual" library of concrete tools and other kinds of materials to support the various activities or "functions" workforce development professionals perform.

Youth Practitioner's Toolbox, Sar Levitan Center for Social Policy Studies
http://www.levitan.org/publications/toolbox/toolboxCM.html
The Youth Practitioner's Toolbox, provided by the Sar Levitan Center for Social Policy Studies, is a series of training materials designed specifically for those front-line workers committed to helping young people succeed. Effective practices from successful youth programs, coupled with research findings about effective workforce investment strategies, provide the foundation for each toolbox. Toolbox modules include Case Management, Individual Service Strategy, Job Development, Follow-Up and Engaging Youth.

Learning

21st Century Community Learning Centers
http://www.ed.gov/programs/21stcclc/index.html
21st Century Community programs to provide expanded academic enrichment opportunities for children attending low performing schools and to provide youth development activities.

Family Center on Technology and Disability
http://http://www.fctd.info/
The Family Center on Technology and Disability serves organizations and programs that work with families of children and youth with disabilities. The organization offers a range of information and services on the subject of assistive technology.

National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET)
http://www.ncset.org/default.asp
NCSET coordinates national resources, offers technical assistance, and disseminates information related to secondary education and transition for teens with disabilities in order to create opportunities for them to achieve successful futures.

TEDWeb - Transformational Education Web
http://www.tedweb.org/index.cfm
TEDWeb is the first education e-community driven by alternative education practitioners and supporters concerned with developing quality education options for all youth, especially vulnerable and out of school youth. TEDWeb serves as an online gathering place to strengthen support for schools and educational programs successfully working with young people, as well as prepare organizations exploring the possibilities of operating schools.
Thriving

Adolescent Health Transition Project
http://www.depts.washington.edu/healthtr/
This website contains information and resources for adolescents with special health care needs, chronic illnesses, and physical or developmental disabilities.

Center for Mental Health Services' (CMHS) Knowledge Exchange Network (KEN)
http://www.mentalhealth.org/default.asp
CMHS provides information about mental health for users of mental health services and their families, the general public, policy makers, providers, and the media.

Healthy & Ready to Work National Center
http://www.hrtw.org
This website provides information and connections to health and transition expertise nationwide.

Connecting

Cornell Youth and Work Program, Cornell University
http://www.human.cornell.edu/youthwork/mentoring/training.html
The Cornell program is designed to help novice mentors gain expertise more quickly. This mentor training program includes sample activities, agendas and evaluation forms for delivering the training in two four-hour sessions. The materials may be adapted for use in shorter sessions or other training programs.

Designing A Successful Mentoring Training, Excerpted from the EMT Group’s Mentoring Plus Workshop Series 1
http://www.emt.org/userfiles/DesignTraining.pdf
This website provides guidance on how to determine the content and design of a mentoring training based on your program’s goals and the mentee population.

National Mentoring Center’s Foundations of Successful Youth Mentoring: A Guidebook for Program Development
http://www.nwrel.org/mentoring/pdf/foundations.pdf
Intended for both new and established programs, the guidebook outlines the program components that mentoring programs of all shapes and sizes should have in place to build strong mentoring relationships and ensure program sustainability. This guidebook cover includes guidelines on screening and ideas for recruiting mentors.

VSA arts
http://www.vsarts.org/
VSA arts is a coordinating organization for arts programming for persons with disabilities. VSA arts offers arts-based programs in creative writing, dance, drama, music and the visual arts.

Leading

Arsalyn Program
http://www.arsalyn.org
The Arsalyn Program views the civic and political engagement of young people as beneficial to country, community, and character and related to encourage young Americans to become informed and active participants in the electoral process.

Congressional Youth Leadership Council (CYLC)
http://www.cylc.org
CYLC offers education leadership conferences for outstanding young people from across the country and around the world, providing them with exciting enrichment opportunities and authentic leadership laboratories.

Do Something
http://www.dosomething.org/
Do Something is a nationwide network of young people who know they can make a difference and take action to change the world around them. The organization helps youth get involved in their community by identifying issues they care about and by creating community projects to turn their ideas into action.

Firestarter Youth Power Curriculum
http://www.freechild.org/Firestarter/home.htm
The Firestarter Curriculum works with young people to educate, engage, and empower this generation of social change leaders. It has been used with thousands of young people around the world, and is a fantastic resource for youth trainers and teachers.

National Youth Leadership Network (NYLN)
www.nyln.org
NYLN is a youth led network of leaders who are also youth with disabilities comprised of approximately 300 youth leaders with diverse disabilities from across the U.S. and its territories (e.g., Guam and Puerto Rico).

Prudential Youth Leadership Institute
http://www.pyli.org/institute.html
The Prudential Youth Leadership Institute is a state-of-the-art training program designed to teach leadership and community service skills to high school-age students. The program was created by The Prudential Insurance Company of America, in partnership with Youth Service America and the Center for Creative Leadership and is currently administered by The Points of Light Foundation.

SHiNE(Seeking Harmony in Neighborhoods Everyday)
http://www.shine.com
SHiNE's mission is to empower young people to promote respect for diversity and end youth violence. SHiNE's innovative programming uses art, music, technology, and sports to build self-esteem and inspire creative self-expression and action.

Social Security Administration - Office of Support Programs for Youth with Disabilities
http://www.ssa.gov/work/Youth/youth.html
The Social Security Administration’s Office of Support Programs for Youth with Disabilities provides information helpful to youth with disabilities, their families, teachers, and others. The web site offers information on youth leadership and development activities, transition, and other related information and links.

Urban Think Tank Institute
http://www.urbanthinktank.org
Urban Think Tank Institute is a nonpartisan, community-based home for a body of thinkers in the Hip Hop generation. It is the first organization that analyzes and frames political, economic and cultural issues, particularly those of concern to people of color, from the perspective of the Hip Hop generation.

Youth Action
http://www.youthaction.net
YouthAction has been a nurturing youth organization since 1987 by assisting youth and adult allies. They provide trainings, events, technical assistance and networking opportunities to strengthen youth organizing and create change for local communities.

References

Ferber, T. and Pittman, K., & Marshall, T. (2002). State youth policy: Helping all youth to grow up fully prepared and fully engaged. Takoma Park, MD: The Forum for Youth Investment. Available at http://www.forumforyouthinvestment.org/Files/StateYouthPolicy.pdf

Gambone, M. A., Klem, A. M., & Connell, J. P. (2002). Finding out what matters for youth: Testing key links in a community action framework for youth development. Philadelphia, PA: Youth Development Strategies and Institute for Research and Reform in Education. Available at http://www.ydsi.org/YDSI/pdf/WhatMatters.pdf .

National Research Council and Institute of Medicine. (2002). Community programs to promote youth development. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. Available at http://www.nap.edu/books/0309072751/html/.

U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (1996). Reconnecting youth & community: A youth development approach. Retrieved December 12, 2003 from http://www.ncfy.com/Reconnec.htm.