Description

Youth-Adult partnerships are youth and adults working together in a positive, mutually respectful environment to achieve common goals. The partnership is one in which both parties share equal power and control over making decisions on what gets done, who does what and how. Each group contributes unique strengths to the relationship.

Why are They Important?

Youth/adult partnerships will help youth develop social skills, group processing skills, communication skills, and problem solving skills. Youth/adult partnerships help prepare youth for leadership roles in their communities

A set of three guiding principles is now routinely used to develop programs and policies and to evaluate the outcomes of positive youth development. The first principle of positive youth development says that society must have a vision of what it wants for its young people. The second principle underscores the fact that young people grow up in communities, not programs, and efforts to promote positive development must be focused on the overall context in which that development occurs. The third principle holds that youth in partnership with adults have critical roles to play as stakeholders in all efforts to promote positive youth development. (Pittman and Irby, 1996)

Youth involvement in leadership roles in the community could be described as a continuum toward leadership and citizenship. At one end of the spectrum is service learning where the youth express an interest in community issues and volunteer to help. At the other end of the spectrum the youth are involved in decision making that impacts public policy. The closer youth get to the far end of the spectrum the higher the power youth have as stakeholders and the more likely the chances to contribute to instilling lifelong civic participation and create new leaders. (Mohamed and Wheeler, 2001)

Our role in 4-H is to help youth develop skills that will help them become productive citizens in their communities. By providing youth/adult partnerships we can have significant impact on the effectiveness of youth in community leadership roles.

Pittman K, Irby M, (1996). Preventing Problems or Promoting Development: Competing Priorities or Inseparable Goals: Takoma Park MD, International Youth Foundation.

Mohamed I, Wheeler W, (2001). Broadening the Bounds of Youth Development: The Ford Foundation and The Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development.

Sandy Stockall
4-H Youth Development Specialist
University of Nebraska, Lincoln