Youth Development
Positive youth development is an asset-building approach that helps youth to identify interests, build skills, experience successes, set life-defining goals, and make positive choices. Quality afterschool programs are an essential element of any youth development approach.
Our social structure has changed since the creation of the public school system. It is no longer sufficient to provide young people with activities during the school day alone. Working families need the support of positive youth development programs.
The Facts
- In Missouri there are more than 800,000 school age youth with both parents, or their single parent, in the workforce (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Youth spend 40% of their waking hours outside of school.
- A 2001 Gallup Poll conducted for America's Promise says that "preparing young people for the future" should be the nation's highest priority. This ranks above improving health care, keeping the economy strong, reducing crime and protecting the environment.
- For every dollar invested in youth development, there is a potential return of $11, according to the Center for Youth Development and Policy Research.
- Youth with mentors are 46 percent less likely to start using drugs, 27 percent less likely to start using alcohol, 33 percent less likely to hit others and 52 percent less likely to skip school.
- 75 percent of youth in public housing participating in a job readiness program went on to college and 80 percent of those placed in jobs kept them.
- The average fee for after-school programs in Missouri is $3,139 a year — about the same as tuition at a community college (Fight Crime, Invest in Kids).
Youth Development Programs provide:
- Needed support for working families
- A pro-active way to improve public safety
- An effective way to improve academic achievement and social skills
- A job-ready workforce for the state of Missouri
What Missouri Can Do:
- Involve youth in all phases of planning and implementing youth programs.
- Increase excise taxes and use revenue generated to provide youth development program for every youth in the state.
- Improve Youth Worker training and compensation.
- Improve job readiness and involve businesses.
- Support efforts to promote funding for afterschool programs at the state level.
- Support efforts to increase funding for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers.
