Policy Initiatives 

Policy Initiatives

 

 


Regional Compact for Children and Youth
The Regional Compact for Children and Youth lays out six commitments that would result in youth experiencing a community that offers youth what they need to succeed. These commitments are: investing in youth, providing safe places, caring adults, a good education and teaching youth 21 century skills, and providing meaningful opportunities to participate in the community. The Compact was developed by the City of Sacramento, County Office of Education, Children’s Coalition, Youth Development Network and e:merge Coalition (formally known as Ready by 21). The compact is being presented to policy bodies and organizations to adopt to create common language and build a regional youth agenda. It also provides a framework for developing indicators that can be used to measure how well our community supports youth preparation for success.

To see the Community Compact for Children and Youth "Click Here" Please take the compact to your board and partners and ask them to adopt the compact. If you sign the compact please let us know. Please review your program practices to ensure they align with the youth development approach to ensure youth are getting the full range of developmental supports they need in every setting they are in.

Service Learning
Service Learning: YDN is the Co regional lead for service learning. YDN is promoting service learning through trainings and technical assistance, publishing and distribution of a policy brief and requesting school board to adopt service learning as a policy of their boards. In addition, YDN is co facilitating an emerging alliance between various youth groups who want to promote more outdoor and environmental education for students.  Research and resources

Quality Counts
Quality Counts and Human Services Workforce Development. Because of the strong link between good youth outcomes , quality youth programs and a stable and highly trained workforce, YDN has become a champion for strategies that support development of the human services workforce and quality practices. This has resulted in the Sacramento Workforce Investment Board adopting the Human Services Workforce as a critical industry. YDN is working with a local workgroup to raise awareness in the community around the needs of the workforce and to develop strategies that support a strong, stable, supported and well trained workforce. In addition, through Quality Counts, a partnership with the black oak mine school district and the Forum for Youth Investment, YDN is raising awareness around the need in the community to focus on effective youth programs for better youth outcomes. YDN is promoting youth development training be embedded in existing youth worker training systems, and is providing training and educational presentations to expand use of the youth program quality assessment tool and program improvement process. Fifteen organizations are piloting use of the tool in our region.  


REACH
YDN provides technical support to the nine REACH coalitions funded by the Sierra Health Foundation. The coalitions are focused on engaging youth and adults to improve youth outcomes by increasing the number and quality of supports and opportunities for youth success using the youth development approach. YDN is helping the coalitions develop and sustain their work including policies and system changes that will embrace youth development outcomes and strategies.

Area Congregations Together Stand Together For Youth Campaign.
YDN supports ACTS work to reduce youth violence and improve educational success for students by providing coaching around integrating youth and adult partnerships into its organizing methods, as well as providing research for the various organizing committees. View ACT's "Stand Together" Campaign for Youth Success.

For more information about youth development Networks Policy initiatives, please contact Adrian Ruiz by calling 916.308.7082 or via email.

 Additional Policy Resource Links: