Youth Master Planning

The Forum for Youth Investment, working in collaboration with NLC, recently launched the Tennessee Cities Challenge to help local policymakers develop a shared and actionable vision for youth in their communities.  Through this initiative, 5-7 selected communities in Tennessee will receive training to implement the principles of Ready by 21® – a set of innovative strategies that helps communities and states make a measurable difference in the lives of children and youth.

The YEF Institute and the Forum for Youth Investment sponsored an hour-long webinar that introduced city officials, senior municipal staff and community partners to Ready by 21 – a set of innovative strategies that helps communities improve the odds that all children and youth will be ready for college, work and life.
Recording | PowerPoint slides

The YEF Institute and the Foundation Strategy Group sponsored a recent 90 minute webinar on “Improving Outcomes for Children and Youth through Collective Impact.”  The webinar explored how municipal leaders, staff and partners can maximize results by better coordinating and aligning their efforts to improve outcomes for children and youth.
Recording | PowerPoint slides

In recent months, mayor's offices and city departments focused on children, youth and families in Nashville, Tenn.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Denver, Colo.; Berkeley, Calif.; and Mountain, View, Calif. have moved forward in developing comprehensive youth master plans.
Nashville Children and Youth Master Plan | Grand Rapids Youth Master Plan | Denver Youth Agenda (PDF) | Mountain View Youth Action Plan (PDF) | Berkeley, Calif., Vision 2020

The YEF Institute has published an action kit for municipal leaders on creating a youth master plan. The kit offers tips and advice for cities seeking to develop a shared framework and improve coordination of services and opportunities for children and youth.

In recent years, youth master planning has become an established trend in municipal leadership for children, youth and families, according to the YEF Institute's report on The State of City Leadership for Children and Families.
Full report (PDF) | Local infrastructure for children and families chapter (PDF) | Examples of local youth master plans

The YEF Institute's first-ever report on The State of City Leadership for Children and Families identifies the nation's most cutting-edge city strategies to help children and families thrive.  A chapter on local infrastructure for children and families highlights the broad range of innovations and trends in municipal leadership, including the growth of youth master planning in cities across the country.
Full report (PDF) | Local infrastructure for children and families chapter (PDF)

Published with support from MetLife Foundation, this action kit for municipal leaders offers tips for the development of a city-schools youth master plan. By using a master planning process to more effectively coordinate services for children and youth, communities can identify unmet needs, eliminate barriers to services, and increase the return on investment for local programs.

These examples highlight youth master plans and other comprehensive plans for children, youth and families that have been developed by more than 30 cities throughout the country.

The AED website provides information and guidance to help cities conduct community youth mapping projects.

The Search Institute website focuses on strategies for promoting young people's developmental assets, or areas that help children grow into productive and caring adults, such as family support, neighborhood safety, and youth programs.

The Youth Participation Advisors Network (YPAN) helps local elected officials and senior municipal staff promote youth participation in local government by sharing research, strategies, policies, and best practices.  YPAN members can network with other city leaders on a broad range of topics, including youth councils, youth summits and political forums, youth service and service learning, youth mapping projects, youth master planning, youth-adult partnerships, and appointment of youth to municipal boards and commissions. 
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The Forum for Youth Investment, working in collaboration with NLC, recently launched the Tennessee Cities Challenge to help local policymakers develop a shared and actionable vision for youth in their communities.  Through this initiative, 5-7 selected communities in Tennessee will receive training to implement the principles of Ready by 21® – a set of innovative strategies that helps communities and states make a measurable difference in the lives of children and youth.

Supported by MetLife Foundation, this project helped six cities - Charleston, S.C.; Lakewood, Ohio; Washington, D.C.; Lexington, Ky.; Portland, Ore.; and Grand Rapids, Mich. - implement comprehensive plans for children and youth. These cities are implementing plans that focus on specific issue areas as well as community-wide youth master plans.

Through the MetLife Foundation City-Schools Youth Planning Initiative, the YEF Institute offered technical assistance to six cities to help them develop youth master plans.  The selected cities included Charleston, S.C.; Des Moines, Iowa; Diamond Bar, Calif.; Edmond, Okla.; Lakewood, Ohio;  and Minneapolis, Minn.