HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala and
First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton today announced the award of
over $1 million in Youth Development State Collaboration Demonstration
Project grants to nine states to develop and support innovative
youth development strategies. The announcement was made at a national
conference for youth, Destination Future sponsored by the National
Resource Center for Youth Services, at which many of the young
people participating have been in the foster care system.
Each state will receive a grant of $120,000. The states are: Arizona,
Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska,
New York, and Oregon. The grants will help the states identify,
develop, and strengthen effective youth development strategies.
Efforts will focus on young people at risk, such as teenagers
who are leaving the foster care system, homeless and runaway youth,
abused and neglected children, and others served in the child
welfare and juvenile justice systems.
"The First Lady has said that it takes a village to raise
a child and with these grants, states will engage entire communities
in pro-active, youth development approaches that will emphasize
positive outcomes for young people," said Secretary Shalala.
Programs with a youth development focus can offer young people
the skills, knowledge and community support they need to function
effectively. For the young people themselves, the efforts will
promote a sense of competency, connection to others and to society
as a whole, and a belief in control over one's own life. Successful
strategies will be shared with program developers, managers and
other youth service professionals across the country.
"Youth development is a community effort," said Olivia
A. Golden, HHS assistant secretary for children and families.
"To make it work, we need close collaboration among governments,
communities, and organizations. These grants are designed to bring
everybody together to make it happen."
Secretary Shalala also announced a new study to review and analyze
data on the Independent Living Program, a Social Security Act
title IV-E foster care program administered by HHS. The program
was established in 1986 to help youth in foster care as they reach
18 years old make the transition to independent living by arranging
educational and employment assistance, training in daily living
skills, individual and group counseling, and a range of outreach
programs. The report will also include examples of model program
activities, information about problems and service delivery, shortcomings
and gaps, and financial data.
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