CONNECTICUT
New initiative helps build youth's developmental assets
Did you know that only 33 percent of the young people in our community believe they are valued?
In November 2008, approximately 1,800 students in grades seventh through 12th in Darien participated in a survey that revealed what our young people think about their lives, values, opportunities and relationships with families, teachers, friends and neighbors. The survey was developed by Search Institute, a national nonprofit organization based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
On the basis of research on child and youth development, the institute has created a framework of 40 “building blocks of healthy development” that can help guide adults and youth in creating better communities on behalf of young people. These “building blocks” are called Developmental Assets, and Search Institute has surveyed hundreds of thousands of young people across the country to find out how many and which of these assets young people report having in their lives. (For more information, visit search-institute.org.)
The good news is that a majority of our young people reported they have strong family support, youth programming, achievement motivation and sense of purpose. The bad news is that only a few of our young people find time for creative activities, look positively to adults as role models, or feel competent in planning and decision making. One of the most disappointing results is that only 13 percent of high school seniors “believe it is important not to be sexually active or to use alcohol or other drugs.” But the main thing these findings tell us is that there’s a lot each one of us in Darien can do to help young people thrive.
That is why there is a new Thriving Youth Task Force in town with representatives from the schools, parent groups, local agencies and organizations, Town Hall, the police department, government, churches, businesses and community volunteers, and most importantly, students from the Youth Asset Team, a new group of high school students who are committed to this effort. They are all working individually and collectively to build developmental assets in town through the new Thriving Youth: Connected Community initiative under the auspices of the Human Services Planning Council of The Community Fund of Darien.
Darien Times
21 May 201
