New Year, New Look at Positive Youth Development
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Coulson, who works with the Family and Youth Services Bureau’s Support Systems for Rural Homeless Youth (SSRHY) demonstration project in Colorado, says each rural community has a unique character, and planners need to recognize that people living in these areas have diverse needs. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, he says.
Steve Michael, who works with the Iowa State Division of Child and Family Services, says creating a plan that fits the community means tapping into an area’s biggest asset: the people who live there. “We need to get the right people around the table,” he says. “We need to make sure that the community develops priorities and a plan that will work for them.”
Understand the issues
While each has different needs and resources, most rural places lack public transportation and have limited Internet access and few home computers—factors that lead to the relative isolation of young people in rural areas.
This remoteness means that youth problems, in general, and youth homelessness, in particular, may be hidden. Folks may be unaware of homeless youth in their communities. “Kids might have a roof over their heads, but it’s not their own,” says Michael. And it may be a different roof from night to night.
Knowing and communicating the extent of the problem is crucial, rural youth workers say. Michael, along with Becky MCalley, who work with the SSRHY demonstration project in Iowa, are conducting community meetings, stakeholder interviews, and readiness assessments in two rural communities to understand each place’s needs, what services are available to youth, and what gaps need to be filled. This surveying or mapping of the community will help inform their selection of a community for the demonstration project and the planning process as well.
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