Transcript Slide 1

Youth-Adult Partnership:
Involving Youth in Decision Making
Shepherd Zeldin
Professor of Human Ecology
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, Wisconsin
February 2011
Julie Petrokubi
Program and Evaluation Director
CampFire
Portland, Oregon
Today we will explore …
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What is Youth-Adult Partnership (Y-AP)?
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What do best practices look like?
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How may we use these best practices to promote
sexual health among adolescents?
How is “Being Y-AP Savvy” a resource for
identifying and implementing best practices in
programs?
What is Youth-Adult Partnership?
Youth-Adult Partnership:
Related Terms
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Youth Engagement
Youth Leadership
Youth Voice
Youth-Adult Partnership is the core strategy for
engaging youth in major decisions and
collaborative action in programs, organizations
and communities
Youth-Adult Partnership:
Definition
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A group of youth and adults,
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working together on important issues, where
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all participants have options for engaging in
planning, decision making and action according
to their own interests and skills, in
an environment characterized by mutual
learning and respect among youth and adults.
Why Engage Youth as Partners?
An Issue of Youth Development…
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Youth need opportunities for active learning
Youth need opportunities for new roles/responsibilities
An Issue of Civil Society…
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Everyone has an important role to play
Youth offer unique insight on policy/program design
Legitimate opportunities to engage in the present
encourage youth to engage in the future
An Issue of Social Justice…
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Youth are isolated from public decision making/work
Youth have distinct interests and perspectives
Emerging Research Supports
Positive Impact of Y-AP
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Y-AP promotes the civic, vocational &
social/emotional development of youth
But…young people are not the only ones
who benefit from Y-AP
Adults, organizations & communities also
experience positive impacts
Y-AP Promotes Youth Development
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Civic Development (skills, attitudes, awareness)
Social/Emotional Development (belonging, efficacy)
Vocational Development (skills, social capital)
Community Impact just brought out some of my good
qualities. Like, I’ve always been outspoken. But now I know
how to speak out in a good way so that my voice can be
heard...Now I can get a group of adults’ attention and get
them to listen to me - conference with me - like a peer.”
(Youth Mobilizer in Tennesse)
Y-AP Promotes Staff Development
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Professional Development (skills, confidence)
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Social/Emotional Development (generativity)
“I think we probably had our best response with the last kid
who was on there. If you look at it more closely, it was
because we [adults] feel more comfortable having the youth
on there. And we knew how to actually bring that person
aboard, work with them immediately off the bat. It was a
learning process for everyone who is on there.
(Adult city council committee member in Wisconsin)
Y-AP Promotes
Program & Community Development
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Youth participation becomes a norm
Organizations reflect & respond to youth concerns
Public policies/programs are more effective & equitable
New coalitions emerge to address issues
“We have seen a seismic shift in how the district operates
…Austin Voices for Education & Youth has managed to get
the attention of leaders in the district, and now those
leaders expect that there will be student representation
on district bodies.”
(School District Administrator in Texas)
Individual Reflection
What are the “bright spots” in your own experience
with youth-adult partnership? For example:
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Who have you observed who is very good at
partnering with youth? What exactly does this
person do that makes him/her a good partner with
youth?
Recall one time when you felt that you were being
an excellent partner with youth. What exactly was
happening that gave you this feeling?
Opportunities for
Youth-Adult Partnership
Program
Planning &
Implementation
Training
&
Outreach
Organizing
&
Activism
Youth-Adult Partnership
Governance
&
Policymaking
(Y-AP)
Research
&
Evaluation
Communication
&
Media
Service
&
Philanthropy
(Adapted from Zeldin, Petrokubi & MacNeil, 2007)
Adult Roles in
Youth-Adult Partnership
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Adults may create opportunities for youth to colead within programs, organizations & communities
Adults may also serve as allies on issues and
projects initiated by youth
SYNERGY occurs when both sides contribute
What do best practices look like?
Using Y-AP Savvy
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Program-Level Practices
(Core Ingredients)
Organizational-Level Practices
(Culture of Y-AP)
Strategies for Engaging Colleagues
(Managing Innovation)
Program Level Practices:
“Core Ingredients” for Quality Y-AP
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Youth need choice, youth need options for getting
involved in Y-AP. Youth get inspired when they
can participate in ways consistent with their
interests and skills.
Regardless of where youth choose to get involved,
they need clear roles. They need to know what
exactly is expected of them.
Youth need ample time and coaching to prepare
for their roles. This is how they meet the high
expectations.
Program Level Practices:
“Core Ingredients” for Quality Y-AP
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Y-AP is not one on one mentoring or education.
Y-AP is about a group of youth and adults
working together on a common issue. Y-AP
happens over time, it is not a one-off event.
Y-AP is about mutual respect and sharing. Youth
and adults share ideas among themselves, they
learn from each other, and they work together as
allies on things that matter.
Quality comes from implementing Y-AP in a few
key functions within an organization. As the
organization gets good at implementing Y-AP in
those functions, then it broadens the effort. Small
successes lead to solving big issues.
Research Suggests…
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Program-level change is not enough
Organizations report that quality youth-adult
partnership required them to change “how we do
business”
Promising practices are emerging around how to
create an organizational (or community) “Culture of
Youth-Adult Partnership”
Organization Level Practices:
Culture of Youth-Adult Partnership
Partnership Values:
Promising Practices
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Organizational leaders – through word and deedestablish Y-AP as a core priority.
Group processes address issues of power and
foster “safe space” for respectful dialogue
Organizational goals and actions are clearly
rooted in the “lived experience” of youth
Partnership Structures:
Promising Practices
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Offer multiple “pathways” for youth participation
that vary in terms of skill, expertise and
responsibility.
Establish clear youth/adult roles with policies,
position descriptions and compensation
Provide youth/adults with coaching and feedback
to “grow into their position”
Collective Action:
Promising Practices
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Youth are visibly engaged in work that impacts a
broader community.
Adults assist youth in strategically framing issues
and connect with larger initiatives/audiences
The work models Y-AP to the larger community
Organizational Reflection
What are the strengths currently existing in your organization
that can be built on to implement youth-adult partnership?
For example:
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What is one part of your organization that seems especially
“ready” for Y-AP? What makes you think it is ready?
How does Y-AP resonate with the mission or philosophy of
your organization? How exactly is it consistent or not
consistent with what your organization is trying to
accomplish?
What sorts of dilemmas does youth-adult partnership raise
for your program?
ACT for Youth
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The ACT for Youth Center of Excellence connects positive youth development
resources and research to practice in New York State and beyond. The Center
provides:
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Technical support, training, and evaluation for certain youth-serving
programs funded by the NYS Department of Health.

Youth Development resources: www.actforyouth.net, publications, and
training, and the e-letter ACT for Youth Update. Email [email protected]
to subscribe.

A home base for the ACT Youth Network. Visit the network at
www.nysyouth.net
Resources for Planning & Pondering
Youth-Adult Partnership
Zeldin, S. & Collura, J. (2010). Being Y-AP Savvy: A Primer on
Creating & Sustaining Youth-Adult Partnerships. Ithaca, NY:ACT
For Youth Center of Excellence.
http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/19325/2/
YAP-Savvy.pdf
Camino, L., et al. (2006)Youth and Adult Leaders for Program
Excellence: A Practical Guide for Program Assessment and Action
Planning (YALPE). Ithaca, NY: ACT for Youth Center of Excellence.
http://www.actforyouth.net
Resources for
Integrating Y-AP into your
Program or Organization
Zeldin, S., Petrokubi, J. & Camino, L. (2009) Youth-Adult
Partnerships in Public Action: Principles, Organizational Culture
and Outcomes. Washington, DC: Forum for Youth Investment.
http://www.forumforyouthinvestment.org/files/YouthAdultPartnerships.pdf
Zeldin, S., Petrokubi, J. & MacNeil, C. (2008). Youth-Adult
Partnerships in decision making: Disseminating and implementing
an innovative idea into established organizations and
communities. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41(3).
http://www.springerlink.com/content/5g6134t2g6u27284/
Zeldin, S. & Petrokubi, J. (2008). Youth-Adult Partnership: Impacts
on individuals and communities Prevention Researcher, 15(2).
http://www.tpronline.org/article.cfm/Youth_Adult_Partnership