Effective Youth Practitioners

[Laura Rodriguez]

A youth practitioner should foremost care and have children as one of their
passion.  Without this anyone is just going through the motions.  Aside
from this a youth practitioner should have effective communication skills,
some knowledge of behavior management skills, should be effective at
seeking and utilizing resources, should have some knowledge of program
direction or guidelines.  Youth practitioners should have knowledge about
program goals and evaluations, skills to decipher and implement best
practices for their programs as well as program curriculum.

Hope this helps. L.R.

----------------------------------------------
Original Message:
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 2002 11:32:38 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Tony Streit" <TStreit at EDC.ORG>
Subject: YouthLearn Update

YouthLearn Participants:

I realize it has been some time since I last checked in with you, but know
that we've been hard at work developing plans for the coming year.  We're
very interested in expanding the services currently offered by the
Initiative and responding to the needs of the field.  I wanted to update
you briefly on these efforts and get your feedback as we move forward.

While we're very proud of the current YouthLearn resources and materials,
we've found that what people most often turn to us for is the opportunity
to access in-depth training opportunities.  People are also looking for
curriculum and professional development that is uniquely targeted to their
own context.  Given these two needs, we're currently developing two new
program offerings for next year; a Peer Training Institute and YouthLearn
Tailored Services.  Through the Peer Training Institute, we hope to build a
cadre of expert practitioners from the field who can facilitate local
training efforts on our behalf.  With Tailored Services, we intend to work
directly with regional and national organizations to create tools and
training opportunities that respond to their unique needs.  Your input in
both areas will be vital as we move forward.

At this time, as we work to secure resources to support these new efforts,
we're hoping you can share with us your thoughts on effective programs for
youth.  In particular, I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the
qualities that make for an ideal practitoner in our field.  What skills
must they have?  What tone should they set?  How do they relate to youth in
their programs and the community at large?  I'm also interested in stories
of people you think exemplify the kind of experts we hope to support
through the Peer Training Institute.  I encourage you to share your
thoughts with the full list, but you can certainly email me directly if
you'd like.

Looking forward to new opportunities and collaborations!

Tony

<p>Tony Streit, Project Director
The YouthLearn Initiative at EDC
55 Chapel Street, Newton, MA 02458
617.618.2778  Fax 617.332.4318
www.youthlearn.org
tstreit at edc.org

<p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
YouthLearn ( http://www.youthlearn.org ) brings together youth
professionals to share information on using technology to create
exciting learning environments. YouthLearn was created by the
Morino Institute ( http://www.morino.org ) and is now an Initiative
at Education Development Center ( http://www.edc.org ). We hope
this list assists you in your efforts to make a difference in the
lives and potential of young people.

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