This position paper was prepared by the New Futures Collaborative, a group of community leaders concerned with improving outcomes for at-risk youth and families in the Dayton (Ohio) community. It is evident that for some individuals, there has been a value shift and devaluation of human life. A small but growing number of youth are committing…

This Kids Count report uses data from the Arkansas Department of Health to examine statewide trends in child safety. The findings suggested that in 1996, about one-third of child deaths in Arkansas were due to non-natural causes, with substantial racial and sex differences. Causes such as accidents, homicides, and suicides were more common for…

This Kids Count fact book examines statewide trends in the well-being of Delaware's children. The statistical portrait is based on key indicators in four areas: single-parent families, births to teenage mothers, juvenile crime and violence, and education. Following brief sections on the state's demographics and economic status, the fact book…

Community-based prevention-oriented approaches that provide basic supports to families are needed to address rising rates of violence, child abuse, and other socially disruptive behavior. Weak families, weak neighborhoods, and weak economies are mutually reinforcing and lead to negative behaviors by youth and others. In proposing a community…

Since schools are community institutions that have the most extensive and sustained contact with children, they have potential to serve as community centers for providing comprehensive and integrated social services. Schools are initiating programs that deal with children's needs beyond the academic realm, schools are calling on agencies and…

This paper describes a Child Care/Parenting Project established to meet the needs of teen parents and parents-to-be in 19 area schools served by the West Campus Technical Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The presence of a licensed child care facility on the vocational high school campus helped to expand and improve the vocational education…

Part 2 of this Australian newsletter from the National Clearinghouse on the Transition from School to Work contains 11 review papers offering perspectives from various authors on a youth policy. The first two papers, "Youth Policies" by Shears and Matthews and "Putting Youth into Youth Policy" by Clohesy, provide an overview of…

Statistics are presented for eight measures of child and adolescent health, education, and social and economic well-being in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Indicators measured were: (1) percent low birth weight babies; (2) infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births); (3) child death rate ages 1-14 (per 100,000 children); (4)…

This digest discusses the ways in which counselors in middle schools can help youngsters face the challenges of early adolescence and prepare them for life in high school. It focuses on: (1) understanding one's self; (2) family relationships; (3) peer pressure and drug abuse; (4) stressful lives; (5) sexual maturation; (6) academics; and (7)…

This teacher's manual is one volume of a six volume curriculum for the secondary level, designed to provide a systematic, group-oriented approach to decision-making in areas crucial to adolescent development: work, drug (substance) use and abuse, sexuality and social relationships, people and government, and juvenile law. The major goals of the…

This report on drug abuse in the schools is based on the testimonies of several panels at a Congressional hearing. The materials contain reports from: (1) a group of students talking about their experiences with drugs, alcohol, and delinquency; (2) law enforcement officials and judicial representatives discussing innovative judicial approaches and…

This report synthesizes recommendations on future youth employment policy that emerged from a series of 10 regional Policy Forums sponsored by the National Youth Practitioners' Network. Introductory information lists the sessions and the five discussion questions on the agenda at 10 forums. These three general recommendations are then discussed:…

In spite of the popular misconception of life in rural England as a rustic idyll, social and economic conditions there have created many issues which result in deprivation for rural youth. The major issues which affect employment, schooling, social, and domestic situations for rural youth are: (1) accessibility--lack of transportation; (2)…

This monograph, summarizing the ideas of participants attending a two-day mini-conference, provides educators with information on the relationship between the National Alliance of Business (NAB) and career education. This booklet begins with a section presenting background information on NAB and several standard NAB youth programs. The next…

The main themes of some prominent theories of youthful offenders are reviewed, and some of the far reaching reforms implied by these themes are outlined. The main goal is to consider how schools may respond to the problem, and attention is restricted to changes in schools that may help, even though more fundamental reforms in society would have…