Youth Development Insight

Reaching new youth audiences through partnerships

2013-05-15T19:24:21Z

Community-based programs are great at connecting with local youth. Universities have deep pockets and organizational infrastructure. Partnerships between them can combine these strengths.

In a previous blog post, I discussed how all youth can and do benefit from youth programs, but they are disproportionately valuable to the welfare of low-income or marginalized youth. Ironically, there is a shortage of youth programs designed for this audience. How can a large organization connect with youth locally? Research suggests that the key to engaging new audiences in youth programs lies in partnerships. There is a need for universities to partner with smaller, autonomously funded youth programs because these programs are most effective at reaching youth in high-risk situations.

]]> Autonomously funded youth-serving organizations historically do an exceptional job at reaching low-income youth audiences because they are so tightly embedded in the communities they serve. But because of their small size. they are less likely to have adequate funds to support their program.

Smaller organizations, especially those in low-income areas, invest the majority of their time and resources in competing for funds from a small funding pie. With such a big chunk of their time and resources spent on fundraising, there is little or no time for staff development, program design, and education design. Instability of funding squanders smaller organizations' unique ability to contribute to the positive development of young people living in high-risk environments.

Land-grant universities on the other hand, are less apt to have the intimate relationship with communities. But they can offer partnering organizations stability in funding, as well as training resources, staff development, and program design. An ideal community-university partnership weds the assets of larger land-grant universities to the assets of smaller community organizations.

Our own Urban 4-H Youth Development office, does a great job of partnering with small local groups, such as Emma's Place, a residential community just east of St. Paul in Maplewood. I'm sure there are many other examples.

What do you see as effective ways to strengthen relationships with new youth audiences? What further benefits do you see as a result of community-university partnerships? What are the challenges in forging these partnerships?

-- Joanna Tzenis, assistant Extension professor, Children, Youth and Families at Risk (CYFAR)

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How do we talk about education without imposing our values?

2013-02-20T18:00:00Z

How do you talk about education with immigrant families? Even those of us most experienced in intercultural communications can stumble when discussing such a value-laden subject.

In my work with the Pathways Project and the Minnesota CYFAR project, both of which have a focus on academic and personal success for youth from nontraditional Extension audiences, parents of the youth involved are committed to their children's academic success. But visions of success can vary.

]]> For example, I recently had a conversation with a Mexican-born mother about her child's education plans. The mother explained to me that she is supportive of her daughter going to college someday, but reacted adversely when I connected it to a career: "Quiero que piense en la felicidad, no de una carrera." (I want her to think about happiness, not about a career.) In that moment, I realized I needed to center the conversation about education around her daughter's overall personal happiness and not around her professional advancement, which might represent separation from the family.

Because I was raised by a Greek immigrant father and a Minnesotan mother, I am attuned to how differing worldviews shape expectations for youth development and a young person's educational experience -- and the potential for conflict. Throughout my childhood, both of my parents emphasized the importance of education. But when it came time to apply to colleges, my mother encouraged me to apply to the ones that best suited my interests, regardless of location. At the same time, my father (quietly) preferred I stayed near our family home so as not to disrupt family unity. (Video from the 2002 film "Real women have curves" (Youtube)

Depending on your worldview, you could judge my mother for breaking up the family. Or you could judge my father for limiting my individual potential. Scholarship in intercultural communication tells us we should never denigrate any other world view, but rather help people to understand the relationship between their own culture and the dominant culture. My mother's own astute intercultural communication skills resulted in my father supporting my decision to pursue higher education out of state. (I have since returned to Minnesota.)

In my experience in working with immigrant families around the topic of their child's education, I try to bear in mind the following:

Always assume parents are supportive of their child's education, then through conversations, seek to understand the ways in which they show their support.
Ask families about their own formal and informal education, and also about their hopes and plans for the education of their children. Then connect their hopes and plans to the the educational experience happening in the youth program.
Accept that definitions of "educational success" in parenting may vary and do not impose your own.
You don't have to agree with families' world views; the goal is understanding so you can learn how to communicate in ways that are appropriate in certain cultural contexts.

How do you discuss education with families who hold a different world view than you? What wisdom would you add to this list?

-- Joanna Tzenis, assistant Extension professor, Children, Youth and Families at Risk (CYFAR)

Youth programs designed for those who need them most

2012-10-03T19:32:31Z

Did you know that time spent in youth programs is the most consistent predictor of youth thriving? Participation in them can enhance young people's self-esteem, school performance and civic responsibility. But which youth benefit the most?

While all youth can and do benefit from youth programs, they are disproportionately valuable to the welfare of low-income or marginalized youth.Those who have fewer resources -- financial, cultural, and social -- benefit disproportionately more from programs than youth who have plenty. Ironically, there is a severe shortage of youth programs designed for at-risk youth.

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This video of Willmar youth testing the hovercraft they built together showcases their enthusiasm for learning.

This is an urgent issue that the Minnesota Children, Youth and Families at Risk (CYFAR) team has gone a along way to addressing. The Minnesota CYFAR Sustainable Communities Project is entering its fifth year of operation. Since its launch, we have used the organic middle school model designed specifically for youth and their families at risk. It is not a highly structured program model in the sense that we have a prescribed curriculum, content or activities. Rather, the content emerges from the interests and talents of the youth, family and their community -- keeping program staff on their toes as they continually design a learning environment that sparks those interests and draws out those talents.

Our evaluation findings confirm that the organic nature of the model is essential to successful programming. Each site keeps youth's interests at the center of learning, and so each has a different focus. At the Willmar site, youth love the opportunity "express their nerdiness" in science. In Winona, they escape "living in a text book" and "actually touch stuff." In St. Paul, young people relish the rare urban opportunity to connect with nature in the context of their Ojibwe and Lakota cultures. Because their interests are at the core of programming, across all sites, young people are having fun while learning and motivated to explore their educational interests. This is particularly important for young people whose knowledge or ways of knowing are often marginalized in other settings.

In your experience, what are indispensable elements of youth programs for young people who are at risk for not meeting their basic needs? What can we do as professionals in the field of youth development to advance the development for this type of programming?

-- Joanna Tzenis, assistant Extension professor, Children, Youth and Families at Risk (CYFAR)

Communicating public value: If a young person develops in the woods, does anyone hear it?

2012-05-02T17:00:00Z

We know that youth programs have public value. But does the greater community know? Recipients of public funds must defend their use of public resources by demonstrating the value to the community, not just the value gained by the individuals who participate. Can you articulate what that is? Have you been doing so?

My Extension colleague Laura Kalambokidis works with educators in youth development and other fields across the nation on how to demonstrate the public value of their programs. Laura did a survey of educators that shows that of those who do not infuse a public value approach in their work, the primary reason is that they do not have enough time. To me, this suggests we view this approach as something "extra" to tack onto our plan of work. I would argue that demonstrating public value helps us to prioritize our work and involves changing how we talk about what we do and how we measure the impact of our work.

]]> Youth programs have societal impact. Here are a couple of ways in which they do that:

They build trust among community members
To take a negative example, the "What's Up?" study showed that young people spend a large amount of time isolating themselves with computer games and television viewing. This is a threat to their personal development, but more than that, social isolation among young people is linked to social ailments such as criminal activity and drugs use -- a societal problem (Rankin & Quane, 2000). On the other hand, as one of my favorite authors, Robert Putnam says, trustworthiness "lubricates social life." Relationships among unlike peers and diverse community members, fostered by youth programs, generate social trust (Flanagan, 2003).

I am currently working on the Pathways Project, which is finding that youth in the programs studied have affinity and trust across race, ethnic background and socioeconomic background, embracing the philosophy, "all equal; all different." In their programs, they unpack stereotypes, cross social boundaries and develop trust in people outside of their family. Social trust is the root of democracy and is linked to publicly valued outcomes such as a strong economy, well functioning political institutions, and better performing schools (Rahn and Transue,1998; Social Capital Blog, 2012).
Youth become agents of change
In programs, youth develop agentic capacities-- the ability to improve the quality of life for themselves and their community. So, while leadership skills, education plans, and civic values fuel young people to achieve private success, youth agency is also a resource that can be released into the community, making it a ready asset to the public. Youth programs position young people to be community partners, prepared to work with others to collectively improve the well being of the communities they share. For example, young people in the the Big Urban Woods CYFAR club recently partnered with their school, community organizations and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to restore a neglected 5-acre parcel of forestland. A place that was once a spot of unsightly neighborhood activity is now a vibrant outdoor learning environment and place of pride for the CYFAR youth and others in the community. Young people acted as partners for community improvement.

These are just two examples from my own work. What do you see as the public value of youth programs? Are you letting the public know about the value they receive?

-- Joanna Tzenis, community program specialist