Youth in the Middle

Youth in the Middle approaches the challenges that schools and youth are facing amid a culture of high stakes accountability while trying to implement a community youth development approach to teaching and learning. Youth in the Middle involves teachers, community-based organizations, administrators, youth, and city and county institutional leaders to develop an effective system-wide approach to support positive youth development (social, emotional, physical, and cognitive) across in-school and out-of-school settings. At the heart of this initiative is the question: How can schools, youth-serving community organizations, and local institutions best work together to promote a shared youth development approach to learning, and provide every child with the opportunities and resources he or she needs to succeed? This question is particularly salient in the current educational climate, in which academic performance is stressed above all else.

Youth in the Middle Tool: Youth Development Resource Directory
This directory was compiled in winter of 2008 to support the JGC’s Youth in the Middle Initiative. The organizations in the directory provide resources and services related to the implementation of youth development principles, such as assessment tools, trainings, and practice materials. Although we created this as a resource for local youth development practioners in San Mateo County, with a focus on Redwood City, we hope that it will prove valuable outside this localized scope as well.

Learn more about Youth in the Middle (.pdf opens in new browser window)