Documents background events giving rise to Creation and Mobilization of Counselling Resources for Youth (CAMCRY), Canadian national initiative directed at effecting improvement in career counseling to enable more youth to enter labor market without serious difficulty. Highlights novel and collaborative aspects of the initiative. Notes there are 41…

Reviews youth programs worldwide, focusing on program objectives, contexts provided by programs, activities and processes, relationships of programs to families and schools, and national environments. Outlines six approaches to program evaluation. Suggests that program outcomes are related to intrinsic factors, extrinsic factors, and participant…

The history of the Westinghouse Talent Search from the 1930s to 1991 is discussed. Features of the program are reviewed. Criticisms and praise for the program are presented. (CW)

Puts the label "at risk" in perspective as it relates to youth. Points out that today's adolescents have lower rates of suicide, unwed pregnancy, drug abuse, smoking, and drunk driving than young and middle-aged adults. Suggests that extension youth education moves toward a condition-focused, resiliency model that recognizes the vitality and…

Presents an interview with theater director Jeff Church. Discusses difficulties encountered and accomplishments realized as a director of youth theater. Describes the goals of learning more about one's field, being open to new insights, and selecting materials. Offers suggestions about knowing the community. (CR)

A quality assurance program was designed to teach youth about safe and wholesome food production, animal management techniques, and ethical decision making related to food animal production. Participants gained skills in animal management techniques and their opinions about consumer expectations were positively influenced. The program successfully…

Youth development moves beyond risk reduction by turning a narrow negative focus on at-risk factors into positive action strategies. Critical components of youth development are providing positive ways for young people to meet their needs and building competencies. Physical, social, cognitive, vocational, and moral competence are described, and…

Land's Sake, a community farm in suburban Weston (Massachusetts), cares for most of the town's conservation land, grows organic fruits and flowers, harvests forest products, employs young people, and offers various outdoor environmental education programs. The community's engagement with the land led to the passing of a bond issue to preserve the…

Reports on the theory-driven evaluation of a drop-in center for youth that incorporates a literature search, concept mapping with staff, and focus groups with youth. Findings show strong agreement among the three data sources about critical program components. Discusses implications of a theory-driven approach. (Author/SLD)

The president of the William T. Grant Foundation looks beyond problem adolescents to see young people as assets. The Foundation plans to focus on ways to give young people a meaningful role in society. Seeing youth as a community resource increases opportunities for society and for young people. (SLD)

Wraps up a theme issue that explores the common ground between the restorative justice and community justice movements and examines their effect on substance-abusing youth and the communities in which they reside. Suggests that restorative justice programs may help adolescent treatment providers in their adoption of practices to promote change and…

Examines first year outcomes of an alcohol preventive intervention within inner-city middle schools. Results reveal that significantly fewer neighborhood intervention students initiated alcohol use compared to control students. Suggests that a brief, stage-based preventive intervention may result in significant reductions in alcohol initiation and…

Three significant trends in youth development practice are discussed: movement toward consensus in models guiding practice, movement toward science-based practice, and increasing resources available to practitioners. Consensus on an ecological framework for risk reduction and competence building among advocates for prevention, resilience, and…

Nurturing positive values with youth often involves connecting with them during times of internal struggle and relating these struggles to external influences in their lives. Care and support provided by adults is crucial in these times, even when a youth's outward expression of struggles create conflict or concern. In this article, the author…

The notion of "student voice," or a student role in the decision making and change efforts of schools, has emerged in the new millennium as a potential strategy for improving the success of school reform efforts. Yet few studies have examined this construct either theoretically or empirically. Grounded in a sociocultural perspective, this article…