Who Is In the Drivers Seat? Authentic Youth Engagement

In my work on competency education, I've become absolutely humbled by what it means to run a school or program that is student-centered with an emphasis on student ownership of their education.  Suddenly, adults aren't the only ones in the drivers seat and many of our assumptions about schooling, educational outcomes and what kids need can be challenged and even over-turned.

In the field of youth, we talk about it youth engagement. Sometimes we add the word "authentic" to emphasize what it means for students to have ownership over their own lives rather than simply choices. Authentic youth engagement is particularly hard when they are in child welfare and juvenile justice, systems with lots of rules created around lots of worst case scenarios. That's why gatherings like the National Summit on Authentic Youth Engagement sponsored by Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative and Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago are so important. (Registration closes July 25, so click here to reserve your spot).

Youth engagement in services is one thing. It's a whole other thing to involve young people in periodic meetings and convenings. At the YTFG meetings, its always the Foster Care Work Group that walks the talk, bringing alums from child welfare to the meetings and preparing them to fully participate.  Certainly the alum structure makes a huge difference...We could start to tap into alum programs of Year Up or YouthBuild to make sure young people who have gone to alternative schools and/or experienced detention are participating in shaping how we talk about issues, what our priorities are, and how decisions are made. However, that means we have to give up some control. And that's pretty hard for adults to do and certainly hard for program officers in foundations if every decision has to be justified based on a strategic plan, legacy values, and outputs.

What are your favorite resources on youth engagement? We'd love to compile the best of the best in the field. Here are just a few that I've found.

Youth in Decision Making: University of Wisconsin-Madison study looks at the impact of youth engagement on adults and organizations. 

Funders Collaborate for Youth Organizing:  This group of funders has invested in youth organizing and in establishing a field for when youth work together to improve their communities or address institutional injustice.

Youth as Evaluators: Youth participatory evaluation (YPE) is an approach that engages young people in evaluating the programs, organizations, and systems designed to serve them. Learn more about YPE in the evaluation section of the ACT for Youth website.