The National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth is a free information service of the HHS/ACF Family and Youth Services Bureau. Contact NCFY at (301) 608-8098 or ncfy@acf.hhs.gov. If you're having trouble viewing this e-mail, please click here to view it on the web.. |
In This Issue:
- New From NCFY
- Bright Idea
- NCFY Recommends
- Right on the Money
- Primary Sources
- Funding Opportunities
- Contests and Awards for Youth
Know youth workers or other professionals who might enjoy receiving a copy of the monthly Youth Initiatives Update in their inboxes? PASS IT ON! Subscribing is easy. Simply send an email with "Subscribe YIU" in the subject line to ncfy@acf.hhs.gov.
Free PYD Training
Learn about a positive approach to working with young people while avoiding travel costs and registration fees. Our new self-paced online course, Introduction to Positive Youth Development, will familiarize you with the theory and practice of PYD. When you take the course’s two modules, you’ll learn
- The internal and external influences that help young people thrive
- How to build individual strengths in youth
- How to create positive places for young people
You’ll also receive certificates showing you have completed 1 hour and 45 minutes of training.
For more information about PYD, see Putting Positive Youth Development Into Practice, and other NCFY publications available in print and PDF.
Award-Winning Podcasts
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Subscribe to NCFY’s award-winning “Youth Speak Out” podcast series. In 2009, we talked to young people about community service, date rape, young men and abstinence, surviving a disaster, adolescent parenthood, street outreach and Native youth leadership. Look for podcasts on mentoring, human trafficking, youth homelessness, relationship violence and other hot topics in 2010.
Doulas Support Young Moms
Most youth probably aren’t familiar with the word doula. But some young women have come to know its meaning quite profoundly through the Community-based Doula Project in Chicago, Atlanta, Denver and other locations across the nation.
A doula shares information about childbirth and child rearing and provides physical and emotional support to a mother during pregnancy, labor and the early months of parenting. The Community-based Doula Project, in which women are recruited and trained to work as doulas in their communities, was first used in Chicago to serve low-income, pregnant adolescents. The model was developed by HealthConnect One, a nonprofit training and consulting agency.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to establishing a doula program for pregnant youth, says Jeretha McKinley, who manages national replication of the project at HealthConnect One. McKinley follows the principles below to ensure that each project is firmly entrenched in the community it serves.
Got a bright idea that you've put into practice? Send it to ncfy@acf.hhs.gov and we may feature it in Youth Initiatives Update.
Getting Parents Involved
Learn about when involving parents works—and when it doesn’t—in a new pair of facts sheets from Child Trends. “What Works for Parent Involvement Programs for Children: Lessons from Experimental Evaluations of Social Interventions” presents lessons learned from 67 parent-involvement programs that work, don't work or have mixed results for 6- to 11-year-olds. “What Works for Parent Involvement Programs for Adolescents: Lessons from Experimental Evaluations of Social Interventions” presents lessons learned from 47 parent-involvement programs that work, don't work or have mixed results for 12- to 17-year-olds.
Staying on Course Amid the Recession
As we near 2010, the slowing unemployment rate and a gradual rise in consumer spending have given hope that the recession may be nearly over. But nonprofits and charities, particularly those that assist hard-hit youth and families, continue to face the challenge of serving more people while bringing in fewer dollars. A November 2008 online survey by the Bridgespan Group, a consulting source for nonprofits, found that nearly all of their more than 100 respondents had already seen a simultaneous decrease in gifts and increase in community need; the Community Foundation of Utah, in a yearlong survey of the state’s nonprofits, has found that the same concerns still loom large a year later.
A new year presents a fresh opportunity for youth-serving organizations to reassess their priorities, infrastructure and preparedness for tough economic times, says Fraser Nelson, president of the Utah Nonprofits Association and executive director of the Community Foundation of Utah. “Corporate and individual giving has been down but will recover with the economy,” she says. “But foundations award grants and other assistance on a rolling, more long-term basis, so directors need to be thinking creatively about what’s likely to be a decline in foundation giving over the next two years.”
Nelson gives the following advice for ensuring that your organization stays afloat as the economy continues to recover:
Right on the Money is an ongoing series about how to keep the doors of nonprofit organizations open in good times and bad. If there's a topic you'd like us to address here, please e-mail us.
Bolstering Mental Health Among Young People
Many young people need mental health services, but youth from particular groups may be more likely to experience poor mental health. Victims of intimate partner violence, homeless youth, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, for example, are at greater risk of becoming depressed or suicidal, using drugs, or having trouble at school. The latest research presents findings on these populations and suggests ways to help them.
Primary Sources is a summary of recent research on youth and families. Got a research topic you want to learn more about? E-mail us and we may feature it in Youth Initiatives Update.
Business Plan Competition
Social Impact Exchange
Application Due Date: December 18, 2009
Peaceful Pathways: Reducing Exposure to Violence (PDF)
Robert Wood Foundation
Application Due Date: December 31, 2009
Assets for Independence
Department of Health and Human Services
Application Due Date: January 15, 2010
Coccia Award
Youth Service America
Application Due Date: January 15, 2010
Offender Reentry
Department of Health and Human Services
Application Due Date: January 19, 2010
Research Grants for Preventing Violence
Department of Health and Human Services
Application Due Date: January 19, 2010
State, National and Indian Tribes Planning Grants (PDF)
AmeriCorps
Application Due Date: January 26, 2010
Coming Up Taller Awards
President’s Council for the Arts and Humanities
Nomination Due Date: January 29, 2010
Wireless Innovation Project
Vodafone Americas Foundation
Application Due Date: February 1, 2010
Higher Education Challenge
Department of Agriculture
Application Due Date: February 5, 2010
Get Ur Good On
Youth Service America
Application Due Date: February 22, 2010
Recovery Act Youth Conservation Corps Projects
Department of Interior
Application Due Date: March 31, 2010
Social Change Projects
Ben & Jerry’s Foundation
Application Due Date: Rolling
Campaign for Black Male Achievement
Open Society Institute
Application Due Date: Rolling
$500 Disaster Grants
DoSomething.org
Application Due Date: Rolling
$500 Do Something Grants
DoSomething.org
Application Due Date: Rolling
The Youth Initiatives Update comprises links to Web sites with information on programs, organizations, resources, and publications relevant to children, youth, and family issues. Inclusion of this information does not imply endorsement by the Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), or the National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth (NCFY). Moreover, the points of view or opinions expressed on these Web sites do not necessarily represent the official position, policies, or views of FYSB, HHS, or NCFY.
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