Youth Development Programs

Juvenile Justice & Youth Development

Programs & Grants

Youth Development

Youth development is a process by which all young people seek ways to meet their basic physical and social needs and to build competencies (knowledge and skills) necessary to succeed in adolescence and adulthood. Youth development also can refer to an approach to youth work that emphasizes the prevention of problems before they occur. That is, rather than implementing programs to combat specific youth problems, such as truancy or substance abuse, the youth development approach seeks to positively influence youth by fostering intellectual, social and emotional competencies. An overview of Connecticut’s youth development approach, a list of awards for the youth development category, and additional youth development links are provided below.

Follow the link for youth development program information and funding opportunities:

Law-Related Education

A key resource for those interested in youth development programming is Assessing Outcomes in Child and Youth Programs: A Practical Handbook. The handbook helps managers and staff in youth programs to plan program evaluations and conduct their own simple evaluations. It also provides funders of youth programs with a clearly defined set of youth developmental outcomes and indicators (instruments) for measuring those outcomes.

For additional information on youth development initiatives, visit the Police and Youth and the Combating Underage Drinking.

Grantees under the Youth Development program category may access reporting forms from the Grantee Reporting page.

Connecticut’s Youth Development Approach

Connecticut for Community Youth Development (CCYD) began in 2001 as a statewide project with a goal of stimulating state and local commitment to positive youth development as an essential prerequisite for healthy communities. Its aim was to increase the number of young citizens who are contributing members of their communities by building the capacity of state and local youth serving agencies, associations and funding sources to implement youth development principles and to incorporate best practices for youth development. The CCYD project trained over 1,660 people in Connecticut through a range of training classes, forums, and conferences.

The CCYD project has evolved into a statewide approach to developing Connecticut’s young people. This approach is founded on the belief that youth are valuable, capable resources who should be encouraged to get involved and take on youth leadership roles in community-based activities because every youth needs opportunities to build skills and to form healthy relationships with others. Connecticut’s approach aims to embed youth development principles into all youth programs.

The following publications provide additional information on Connecticut’s youth development approach. Refer also to the youth development links.

Assessing Outcomes in Child and Youth Programs: A Practical Handbook — Provides information to plan and conduct youth development program evaluations.

A Statewide Capacity-Building Model for Positive Youth Development— A report summarizing the Connecticut for Community Youth Development project and results.

Minimum Funding Requirements for Youth Programs – Summarizes appropriate information and requirements for any youth program Request for Proposals, application kit, or program description.

Youth Development Awards

Download the attached files to view information on grant recipients, award amounts and programs funded. Documents are in Microsoft Word format. If you are unable to use Microsoft Word or viewers, please contact our office.

Youth Development Links

Connecticut Youth Development Links:

Civics First, Inc. - A private, non-profit association that promotes and conducts law-related education programs and projects in Connecticut's public and private schools, courtrooms and communities. (www.civicsfirstct.org)
Connecticut Association for Human Services - An independent, nonprofit public education, research and policy development organization committed to decreasing poverty, neglect and inequality in Connecticut. Provides county-by-county rankings of how Connecticut's children are faring in health and achievement as part of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's national KIDS COUNT initiative. (www.cahs.org)
Connecticut Clearinghouse - The state's resource center for information about alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and related issues affecting mental health and wellness. This site includes information on youth development and links to Connecticut resources. (www.ctclearinghouse.org)
Connecticut Department of Children and Families - Provides information on child protective and family services, juvenile justice services, children's mental health and substance abuse related services, and prevention services in Connecticut. (www.ct.gov/dcf)
Connecticut Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services - Incorporates a positive youth development approach into prevention strategies including information dissemination, education, alternative activities, strengthening communities, promoting positive values, and problem identification and referral to services. (www.ct.gov/dmhas)
Connecticut Department of Public Health - Provides programs and services in the areas of injury prevention, school-based health clinics, and youth survey data collection and analysis. (www.ct.gov/dph)
Connecticut Voices for Children - A non-profit advocacy organization that focuses on improving child safety and well-being in Connecticut through policy analysis, research, communication and collaboration (www.ctvoices.org)
Youth Development Training and Resource Center (YDTRC) - Offers programs that promote positive youth development by increasing the effectiveness of youth workers and youth-serving organizations. (www.ydtrc.org)

National Youth Development Links:

American Youth Policy Forum - A professional development organization providing learning experiences for policymakers and practitioners working on youth issues. This site contains links to related agencies, publications on youth issues, and forum briefs on youth and community development topics. (www.aypf.org)
ChildStats.gov - Provides easy access to federal and state statistics and reports on children and their families including population and family characteristics, economic security, health, behavior and social environment, and education. (www.childstats.gov)
FHI360 – Youth-related initiatives of this non-profit organization focus on shifting the public debate from youth problems to youth development. This site contains information on programs, tools and publications in the areas of youth development, civic participation, employment, entrepreneurship and education. (www.fhi360.org).
Kids Count - Tracks the educational, social, economic, and physical well-being of children in the U.S. using a wide variety of government statistics and survey data. The Kids Count Data Book provides state-by-state profiles, maps, and rankings. The site also offers on-line access to a compilation of U.S. Census Data focused on child well-being. A project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. (www.aecf.org)
National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth - The Family and Youth Services Bureau's central resource on youth and family policy and practice. This site contains a wealth of youth development resources, publications and links. Resources are organized into categories for youth services professionals, policymakers, researchers, students and youth, and parents and community members. (www.ncfy.acf.hhs.gov)
Sparkaction– A collaborative journalism and advocacy network to mobilize action by and for youth. This site includes articles and research on a wide range of child and youth issues. (www.sparkaction.org).
Search Institute - A non-profit research organization specializing in practical research benefiting children and youth. Focuses on positive developmental assets and a community-based approach. This site contains data, resources, publications, conferences, training, and survey services. (www.search-institute.org)
U.S. Census Bureau - Provides detailed information and reports derived from the 2010 U.S. Census, including quick facts by state or county, a children's page highlighting data and reports relevant to America's children, and the American Fact Finder, a powerful tool that enables viewing census data multiple ways. (www.census.gov)