Youth Today

11/25/2025

11/21/2025

📚 The gap between research and practice just got smaller.

𝙋𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩: 𝙄𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙋𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙚 is here. A first-of-its-kind resource that translates youth development science into practical concepts.

Edited by Mary Arnold of human development and family sciences at Oregon State University , and Theresa M. Ferrari, extension specialist with The Ohio State University 4-H Youth Development. 💡

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺: Practitioners don't have time to read technical research papers. But good practice is based on research.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 22 chapters bringing leading scholars' voices directly to practitioners.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱:
📍 Program quality & belonging
📍 Developmental relationships
📍 Equity, access & opportunity
📍 Social-emotional learning
📍 Learning from challenges
📍 Purpose & emotion regulation
📍 Celebrating youth professionals

"𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆." — Mary Arnold

Youth Today will interview chapter authors in the coming months with practical takeaways! 🎯

Read the full article → https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/integrating-research-practice-new-resource-bridges-gap/

11/20/2025

🏀 𝙄𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙨𝙣'𝙩 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙨. 𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙨.

Skylar Spencer and Kathryn Jackson, Special Olympics U.S. Youth Ambassadors from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, share how Unified programming — where people with and without intellectual disabilities train and compete together — changed their lives.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁: Research from UMass Boston found that students who participate in Unified Sports and attend whole-school engagement events report the highest sense of belonging at their schools. That belonging is linked to more positive attitudes toward peers with ID.

𝟱 𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
1️⃣ Build a team of champions—youth and adult mentors excited about inclusion
2️⃣ Partner with local schools or Special Olympics programs
3️⃣ Use free "plug-and-play" resources from Special Olympics
4️⃣ Empower youth leadership—give them real roles in planning, coaching, mentoring
5️⃣ Focus on belonging and fun—celebrate wins, share meals, make space for authentic friendships

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀: Now in its 18th year with 10,000+ schools nationwide, Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® demonstrates that inclusion is possible anywhere young people gather — afterschool programs, recreation leagues, community centers.

Create spaces where every young person can lead, belong and thrive. 💪

Read the full article ➡️ https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/back-to-school-back-to-unified-how-your-organization-can-champion-inclusion/

11/18/2025

Peter C. Scales, Ph.D., just retired after 30 years at Search Institute and 50+ years advancing positive youth development. In his new piece in Youth Today, he summarises his capstone essay, 𝘼 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩: 𝙄𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙊𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝘾𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙍𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙨, reflecting on what we've accomplished — and what must happen next.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮: Thriving = individual purpose + social contribution
Young people need BOTH their own goals AND the ability to contribute to their communities.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲: Developmental relationships. These are the driving energy for everything youth need to thrive.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁: 2025 brings attacks on diversity, equity, science, and accurate history—plus massive defunding of programs serving youth.

"It is more important than ever for PYD researchers and practitioners to remain steadfast in communicating the long-term benefits of equitable, culturally responsive approaches."

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘄 — 𝟱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀:
1️⃣ Make organizations more relationally-rich
2️⃣ Understand how culture shapes relationships
3️⃣ Activate youth as drivers of their own relationships
4️⃣ Better understand peer relationships
5️⃣ See single relationships within larger webs

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹: Every young person achieves their purpose and contributes to society through intentional, inclusive, equitable developmental relationships.

𝘼𝙨 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙: "𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙪𝙨, 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣, 𝙗𝙚 𝙪𝙥 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜." 💪

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲 ➡️ https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/capstone-essay-50-years-promoting-positive-youth-development/

11/14/2025

🌿 Exploring the work for Munro Richardson, Karen J. Pittman and Merita Irby examine why young people thrive when systems give them room to explore, grow and make meaning — and why development-friendly ecosystems matter now more than ever.

✔️ The article argues that youth do best when they aren’t limited by rigid structures but instead supported by ecologies of possibility that nurture agency, creativity and connection
✔️ It introduces the idea of unconstrained skills versus constrained skills and explains why open-ended capacities — such as problem solving and purpose — are as essential as traditional metrics
✔️ The takeaway: youth-serving organizations and policymakers should shift from narrow outcome optimization to investing in ecosystems that amplify freedom and growth

🔍 If you work in youth development, learning, policy or community building, this piece offers timely insight.

👉 Read it here: https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/why-unconstrained-kids-need-unconstrained-ecosystems/

11/13/2025

✨ In our latest Q&A, Alex Lohrbach discusses the launch of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's new Elevating Youth Engagement curriculum, created for emerging young leaders and adult allies who work with youth who have experienced foster care.

Lohrbach says the curriculum helps:
✔️ Build authentic youth and adult partnerships rooted in lived experience and brain science
✔️ Equip adult supporters and youth leaders with practical tools and wellness strategies for the heavy work of advocacy
✔️ Shift systems toward engagement that is meaningful — not tokenizing — so policy and practice are shaped with youth voices, not just for them

🔍 Whether you lead a youth-serving organization or support young people in foster care, this resource offers strong guidance.

👉 Read more: https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/qa-alex-lohrbach-release-elevating-youth-engagement-curriculum/

11/11/2025

🎤 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩 2 𝙤𝙛 "𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙘" — 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙥-𝙝𝙤𝙥 𝙢𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩

Daniel Warren, Fluent Research, explores the connection between Positive Youth Development and the Native Tongues.

"Positivity is not about perfection. It's about direction." — Q-Tip

A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Queen Latifah, Jungle Brothers modeled PYD before it was even a thing. 💡

𝗛𝗼𝘄? They centered:
✓ Strength, not deficits
✓ Creativity & curiosity
✓ Community & belonging
✓ Youth voice & leadership
✓ Inclusion (everyone was welcome in the cipher)

"We weren't trying to separate ourselves from the street. We were trying to lift it up." — Afrika Baby Bam

This is what PYD looks like in action: Don't just keep youth from harm—give them something powerful to move toward. 🎯

When young people get real chances to express their gifts and lift each other up, they don't just survive. They thrive.

Read the full post → https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/positive-youth-development-meets-native-tongues/

11/10/2025

💪 "𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗜'𝗺 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝟭𝟲, 𝗜'𝗺 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁."

A 16-year-old in foster care shares her story of learning to advocate for herself — originally published in Represent by Youth Communication .

𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆:
- Entered foster care at 12
- Bounced between homes, facilities, and back to mom
- At 15, chose to stay in foster care for stability
- Was misclassified as "therapeutic" when she was the "good kid"
- Over 100 placement attempts failed because of this label

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁:Her lawyer Caroline taught her rights she never knew:
✓ Access your own case files
✓ Speak to the judge yourself
✓ You should receive clothing, food, hygiene products (she'd been paying herself!)
✓ Every youth gets a team: lawyer, case planner, life coach, caseworker

𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸: Got psychiatric evaluations, corrected false reports in her files, changed her classification and is now waiting for placement with a foster mom she knows and trusts.

"𝗜'𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲. 𝗜'𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀."

Real youth agency = a teen deciding their life is worth fighting for. 🎯

Read her full story → https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/never-too-young-to-be-an-advocate/

11/06/2025

💙 "𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒖𝒕."

That's why a 16-year-old disclosed abuse to a stranger—a facilitator who simply mentioned child sexual abuse matter-of-factly during a training.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 20 boys experience sexual abuse before age 18. Yet many youth professionals never hear disclosures.

𝗪𝗵𝘆? Young people only tell adults who can stay calm. They don't want to cause pain or lose control.

Elizabeth Clemants, founder of Hidden Water and trauma expert with 30+ years experience, shares what makes a "safe adult":
✓ Speak about sexual harm calmly, not urgently
✓ Make it clear the topic is speakable
✓ Practice simple phrases: "It's common for young people to be touched sexually when they don't want to be. That's not their fault."
✓ Respond with steadiness: "Thank you for telling me. I'm here to help you navigate this."

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵: Child sexual abuse doesn't disappear when unspoken—it spreads.

What we say calmly, clearly, and often may be the difference between a young person reaching out or staying silent. 💙

Read the full story ➡️ https://youthtoday.org/2025/11/what-we-dont-say-about-child-sexual-abuse-why-it-matters/

11/05/2025

💔 $𝟭𝟲𝟱 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟴. 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀—𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.

In at least 49 states, child welfare agencies search case files, find youth with Social Security benefits, become their "representative payee," and intercept funds—often without the child's knowledge.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙮: Over $900/month for some youth, totaling tens of thousands during their time in care. Money that could cover college or an apartment down payment.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: States use it for "room and board"—something they're already mandated to provide.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙩: Youth aging out at 18 with $25 in their pocket, facing homelessness, academic struggles, and damaged credit.

William Kang, a high school senior, calls this what it is: a profound ethical breach that robs vulnerable youth of their financial foundation.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: Ban the practice and create protected accounts youth can access upon aging out. States like Massachusetts prove it's possible.

Every young person deserves an equitable foundation for their future. 💪

Read the full article ➡️ Link in Bio

10/29/2025

🔗 𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓—𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒊𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉.

New research in the Journal of Youth Development reveals a critical insight: young people need skills, confidence, and support to turn connections into opportunities.

Erica Van Steenis, Ashley Boat and Miray Seward studied 74 youth, alumni, and staff across six programs and found four ways social capital gets mobilized:

1️⃣ Youth-driven - Taking initiative (LinkedIn outreach, forming study groups)

2️⃣ Connection-driven - Peers/mentors make introductions

3️⃣ Organization-connected - Programs provide tools (resume templates, networking scripts)

4️⃣ Organization-driven - Programs broker opportunities directly (guaranteed interviews, internships)

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: It's not just about youth initiative. Organizations create the conditions that make mobilization possible. 🎯

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽:

✓ Assess which domains are strongest in your program

✓ Train staff to leverage their own networks as connectors

✓ Tailor support to different comfort levels with initiative

✓ Foster alumni returning as mentors (pay-it-forward culture)

✓ Recognize this as an equity strategy

For youth from marginalized communities, mobilizing social capital can counter systemic barriers.

"Relationships matter most when young people can activate them." 💪

Read the full article ➡️ https://youthtoday.org/2025/10/relationships-opportunities-learned-social-capital-mobilization/

10/29/2025

🚨 89% of employers avoid hiring recent graduates. The top reason? They don't know how to work well on a team.

As AI handles routine tasks, our human value increasingly depends on our ability to collaborate and solve novel challenges. Yet traditional education often celebrates individual achievement while the workplace demands teamwork.

Dan Gonzalez, CEO of District C, shares how reimagined internships can bridge this gap. Over the past 8 years, 9,000+ students have tackled live business challenges through District C's Teamship program—from boosting employee engagement for software firms to helping cities address illegal waste dumping.

Four ways this model prepares students for the future of work: 💼

1️⃣ Teaching collective intelligence - Students like Lamont, once a self-described loner, learn to ask probing questions and synthesize different viewpoints.

2️⃣ Enabling career exploration - Working on problems from Snapchat, IBM, and the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, students sample fields without declaring a major.

3️⃣ Pairing students with expert coaches - Teachers shift from answer-givers to coaches, creating a culture of collaboration and student ownership.

4️⃣ Removing traditional barriers- Happening during the school day eliminates transportation and scheduling obstacles that typically exclude students.

The bottom line: In real work, your value is measured by the contribution you make with and for others.

The future belongs to those who know how to coordinate with others to do hard things. 🎯

Read the full article ➡️ https://youthtoday.org/2025/10/four-ways-reimagined-internship-prepares-students-teachers-future-work/