The Promising Practices Network (PPN) on Children, Families and Communities (www.promisingpractices.net) began as a partnership between four state-level organizations that help public and private organizations improve the well-being of children and families. The PPN website, archived in June 2014, featured summaries of programs and practices that…

This report is designed to assist communities engaged in or contemplating initiatives focused on at-risk youth. Much of the information comes from evaluations of the Communities in Schools, SafeFeatures, and Children at Risk initiatives. Brief descriptions of experiences or practices of the community programs are used to illustrate points made or…

The "Colorado Children's Budget" presents and analyzes investments and spending trends during the past five state fiscal years on services that benefit children. The "Children's Budget" focuses mainly on state investment and spending, with some analysis of federal investments and spending to provide broader context of state…

This issue brief explores the problem of child pornography and teenage prostitution and examines some of the strategies federal, state, and local governments employ to address these social problems. After a brief review of Congressional actions and Supreme Court decisions, state statutes affecting pornography and prostitution are reviewed, and…

Community-based programs in the juvenile justice system present a promising alternative to the disappointing results achieved by large institutional facilities. A diverse group of states has found that intensive, individualized services provided in small, family-like residential settings or in the juvenile's own home yield comparable or reduced…

This report summarizes the efforts and successes of the Youth as Resources (YAR) initiative, a program that offers youth empowerment and leadership in community service. It utilizes all youth in an effort to address any social or community issue deemed important to a local area and provides opportunities for a wide range of agencies to host or to…

This document contains witnesses' testimonies and prepared statements from a Congressional hearing called to discuss successful programs and approaches to serving youth more effectively in the field of juvenile justice. In his opening statement, Representative Dale Kildee emphasizes that much of the progress made in the field of juvenile justice…

The emotional, social, intellectual, and physical needs of young people from 10 to 15 years old are being increasingly recognized in the schools, but the activities of these students after school are just beginning to be considered in terms of their effects on adolescents' academic and personal growth. Early in 1985, the University of North…

This document contains witness testimony and prepared statements from the Congressional hearing called to examine illegal drugs in the Chicago school system. Witnesses include Senator Charles Percy, the lieutenant governor of Illinois, and a panel of students from Deerfield and Chicago who give eyewitness accounts of the scope of the drug problem…

This document presents witness testimonies and prepared statements from the Congressional hearing called to examine mental health trends for treating adolescents with emotional or substance abuse problems. Committee chairman George Miller voices concern that while insurance coverage changes and third party health care reimbursements are expanding…

This report concerns the coordination of goals, objectives, and activities of agencies which have responsibilities for programs and activities related to child abuse and neglect, as required by P.L. 93-247, as amended. It describes some of the combined efforts of federal agencies and other organizations for the calendar years 1983 and 1984 and…

This document contains witnesses' testimonies and prepared statements from the Congressional hearing called to examine the living conditions of children in state care. Parents, youth workers, legal advocates, program administrators and state officials discuss the cost effectiveness of community-based services and the effectiveness of various…

This document reviews three teenage pregnancy prevention strategies which were selected because of their easy access to teenagers and to illustrate the cost of implementation. After a discussion of the high cost of teenage pregnancy, the role of the state legislatures is described. Accessibility and acceptability are cited as two important…

This document contains an executive summary and a six-part report presenting findings from a series of small studies assessing the research on school-based drug prevention programs and surveying federal, state, and local school district prevention activities. It focuses on prevention, or education, activities directed toward school-age youth…

A case is made for establishing more community-based socialization programs for 10- to 15-year-old black males from disadvantaged families in poor neighborhoods. It is argued that effectively run neighborhood-based programs can accomplish the following: (1) establish caring and nurturing relationships that earn youths' attention and trust; (2)…