Background: The current global cohort of youth has been called "a generation at-risk", marked by a dramatic rise in youth who are not in employment, education or training programmes. In 2010, youth were three times as likely as adults to be unemployed, with youth unemployment worsening in 2012 and 2013. Accordingly, there is an urgent…

There is a critical need to identify solutions to the unemployment of high school dropouts. When a student prematurely leaves school, the economic, social, and political impacts result in negative consequences for the individual and the community. Of the nearly 2.2 million students who drop out of high school every year in the United States,…

Peer Resources is at the heart of positive youth development. Trained youth serving in roles such as mentor, tutor, mediator, leader, and educator can change the norms of a school and community. Utilizing people as resources is an important concept to embrace. During the last seven years, peer mentors have reduced the drop-out rate of 16- and…

On February 17, 2009, President Barack Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into law. Passed in response to the 2008 recession, the Act's purpose was to create jobs, pump money into the economy, and encourage spending. Through the Act, states received $1.2 billion in funding for the workforce investment system to provide…

Bootstraps is a 12-week program designed for rural youth, ages 18-21, who are not working and not in school. The program goal is for participants to develop skills and motivation to find meaningful work, which is accomplished through a combination of classroom learning and practical fieldwork. The environmental fieldwork on public lands, funded by…

In 2003 foster youth employed by a foster youth advocacy organization suggested that an evaluation of group home services to foster youth be conducted in Alameda County, California. This report presents the development and conduct of this evaluation study; how funding was obtained; and how foster youth were hired, trained, and employed to produce…

This paper presents the policy statement on youth employment from the National Collaboration for Youth (NCY). An introduction briefly explains the role of the NCY with regard to youth employment and describes the types of programs and services supported by NCY. A section on background provides statistics on teenagers and employment from the Bureau…

This article indicates some of the ways in which the National Urban League has dealt with the problem of minority youth. These ways include programs such as the Street Academy Program, student internship programs, and the Black Executive Exchange Program, a conference on youth employment, and affiliation with other programs. (Author/AM)

Examines the Program for Local Service (PLS), which began in 1943 in the Seattle area. Essentially, the program provided for youth volunteers to serve in approved public or nonprofit organizations. (Author/AM)

Outlines some of the achievements of the Summer Program for Economically Disadvantaged Youth (SPEDY) during the summer of 1978. Four programs in Virginia, Minnesota, Texas, and Washington are examined not because they are exemplary but because they illustrate what is happening in some of the better youth employment programs around the country. (CT)

Both economic and sociological analyses of the "youth problem" tend to segregate young people into two classes: those who will make it through the system as it exists, and those who will need help to make it. The resulting programs for those who need help often have the effect of further stigmatizing the participants. By contrast, a program which…

At the urging of the governor of Iowa, private business and industry plus interested citizens organized and funded Project Iowa Training and Retraining of Youth (Project I-TRY) programs in many Iowa cities during the summers of 1967 and 1968 and during the 1968-1969 school year. The program gave youth from low and marginal income families a…

A YCC project to improve and finish a complete outdoor education center is described. The program and objectives are outlined. Methods of evaluating the students experiences are listed. Testing showed that the students attitudes toward themselves, peers, and the environment became more positive. (AJ)

Designed to serve as a resource to persons who work with youth and who plan activities to improve the education/work connection, this report identifies existing programs and activities that address the education-to-work connection and work to improve youth employment. It consists of three sections. The first section contains an overview of youth…

Reviews several youth employment programs set up by the Youth Employment and Demonstration Projects Act of 1977. Two programs examined are the Young Adult Conservation Corps and the Youth Incentive Entitlement Pilot Projects. Program participants receive job experience, at least minimum wages, and may receive academic credit. (CSS)