Growing evidence suggests that Positive Youth Development (PYD), a holistic approach to developing assets and competencies, can help prepare young people for success in adulthood, including success in the workplace. At its core, PYD focuses on creating a supportive, developmentally appropriate learning setting by emphasizing positive…

Understanding factors that contribute to students' success is of great interest to educators. Research indicates that participation in extracurricular activities positively correlates with students' development both academically and personally. Students who participate in extracurricular activities have greater academic success, greater character…

Youth today develop within nested systems that either positively or negatively influence their development. Recent research shows that American youth have made tremendous progress: fewer teen births, fewer youth who are heavy drinkers or smokers, and more students completing high school. However, data also indicate that the number of youth living…

Developed for an NIH training institute, this volume is organized around the most frequently asked questions by researchers starting their careers in applied research in child and adolescent development. With contributions from the leading scholars in the field, actual research experiences highlight the challenges one faces in conducting such…

This paper describes work directed toward creating community-supported positive youth development interventions that draw on a developmental intervention science outreach research approach. With respect to developmental interventions, this approach focuses on creating evidence-based longitudinal change intervention strategies for promoting…

In order to maximize the effectiveness of prevention and intervention efforts with youth and address the needs of the whole student, it is necessary to work not only directly with youth, but also to partner with other key adults in a young person's life: parents and guardians, teachers, after-school staff, and clinicians. Inherent in RALLY's…

The 2000 White House Conference on Teenagers brought together parents, teenagers, educators, youth workers, researchers, policymakers, and others to examine how families and communities can teach youth sound values, promote healthy behavior, and support positive development. Presents an article by Hillary Rodham Clinton that summarizes the…

Kansas City, Missouri, is one of six sites in a national demonstration project, Community Change for Youth Development (CCYD), which aims to increase basic developmental supports and opportunities available to youth age 12-20 years. The demonstration focuses on five basic elements: adult support and guidance, opportunities for involvement in…

Presents the Indiana Wilderness Challenge, which is a program committed to coordinating the strengths of every possible community effort in helping troubled young people face the struggle of moving from childhood into the adult world. The primary focus is prevention of institutionalization and involvement in the juvenile justice system. (CT)

The public image of adolescents tends to be very negative, and there is a disconnect between adults and youth. However, numerous examples of what is right with today's youth exist. Many communities are formally or informally involved in youth initiatives. Stresses the importance of adult involvement in adolescents' lives, noting social norms about…

The Surgeon General, the Nation's top public health officer, is appointed by the President of the United States to help protect and promote the health of the Nation. The recently published "Surgeon General's Call to Action To Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking" [ED496083] highlights underage alcohol use as a major public health and…

A growing number of cultural, educational, and social service programs around the United States report success in reducing teenage school drop-out rates, unemployment, substance abuse, and pregnancy. Facilitators of these programs claim that long-lasting impact requires not only informing young persons about the real dangers of such behavior, but…

Children aged 10-14 need to assume responsible and challenging roles as part of their adolescent development. Based on the physical, social, moral and ethical, and emotional developmental characteristics of this age, adolescents need to discover and test new skills; develop a sense of competence; socialize to develop close friendships; take part…

Born in the aftermath of social upheaval in 1970, Servol (Service Volunteered for All) is a grassroots community development organization working with preschoolers and adolescents in the Caribbean nations of Trinidad and Tobago. This booklet describes the efforts and successes of this program, founded through the intervention of a Catholic priest…

Verbal learning does not prepare adolescents for a society which expects students to graduate as adults from secondary school. This is obvious when one sees how often adolescents are excluded from adult activities and responsibilities. Experiential learning can provide students with a link between academic content and the self-confidence adulthood…