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Youth Work Professionals

 
Find new resources each month in the ACT for Youth Update!
Youth Voice
What makes a good relationship between a young person and an adult?
Someone you can trust

Someone you can confide in

Relates to you or at least tries

Direct and not judgmental

Adults can be better to talk to because they are better listeners

Adults should never say "back in my day" when we ask for advice...we often can't relate

Adults should realize that times are different

Sometimes we just need adults to listen to us and not try to fix everything

Adults shouldn't act like our generation is so bad...they raised us

- New York City members of the
ACT Youth Network

Professional Development for Youth Workers

The ACT for Youth Center of Excellence is committed to promoting the language of positive youth development (PYD) and integrating core PYD principles into the field of youth work. We aim to enhance the capacity, knowledge, and competencies of adults who work with and for young people, as well as their organizations.

Positive Youth Development 101 Training

The 10-hour training curriculum Positive Youth Development 101 offers an orientation to positive youth development for new youth work professionals. The curriculum includes five sections:
  • Theoretical Foundation of PYD and Adolescent Development
  • Positive Youth Development Outcomes
  • Youth Voice and Engagement
  • Youth Development Programming
  • Youth Worker Competencies

PYD 101 Online Courses

Positive Youth Development (PYD) 101 Online is a series of short, interactive courses intended to introduce PYD to new youth work professionals, volunteers, and advocates. The series can be used independently or to supplement the training curriculum listed above.

PYD Network Webinars

ACT for Youth sponsors occasional webinars for people interested in positive youth development. To be notified of upcoming webinars, contact Jutta Dotterweich. For more presentations and articles, see our PYD publications.

PDFFair Weather Ahead: Coping with Adolescent Stress (PDF slides)
Narrated PresentationFair Weather Ahead: Coping with Adolescent Stress (Recording, 2017)

Core Competencies in Youth Work

What does it take to be a good youth worker? On this page, we introduce core competency areas and discuss building expertise through "deliberate practice."

Facilitation Tips

The facilitation and implementation of program activities is essential to the work of youth professionals. Facilitation Tips offers general presentation techniques and tips as well as warm-up activities and energizers.

Teaching Techniques

Common teaching techniques such as brainstorming, small group activities, and role plays are discussed using behavioral checklists and video examples of good and weak facilitation.

Inclusiveness

On this page, we discuss the internal barriers youth work professionals may face when they seek to reach youth, and ways to become more inclusive and culturally competent.

Self-Care for Youth Work Professionals

Professionals in the field of youth development are often deeply dedicated and personally invested in their work. It is this commitment to others that makes self-care essential for staff. The Self-Care page suggests strategies and links to resources.

Social and Emotional Learning Toolkit

The Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) approach incorporates many principles of youth development. Originally developed for school settings, SEL focuses on the facilitation and implementation of learning activities and programming, which can be easily transferred into other settings. The SEL Toolkit provides a range of resources, strategies, and tools.
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