Youth Service
“Service is important because it’s the driving force for change and innovation. There are so many problems we face on a daily basis that can easily be changed and more that can’t easily be changed unless we put in the time and effort. If we aren’t putting in the effort, who else will?”
J’Lynn R., Norfolk State University
Leveraging the Potential of Youth Service: A Call to Action
CELO is working in partnership with The Allstate Foundation in support of their new youth empowerment strategy focused on empowering youth to serve and improve communities. The first portion of this partnership brought together a cross-sector, intergenerational fellowship that generated a new definition and model of service for contemporary society co-created by youth, scholars, and service-centered organizations. The results introduce a new definition, model, and design considerations to guide the next decade of youth-led, youth-driven service.
This report includes:
- The State of Play for Community Service
- Three Opportunities for Leveraging the Potential of Service
- A New Vision of Youth-Led, Youth-Driven Service
- Design Considerations for Service
- Recommendations for Impact
- The Path Forward
“Accelerating youth-led, youth-driven service is essential because it cultivates a greater sense of agency, purpose and connectedness. Youth need to be involved in all aspects of service, from research and governance of service-organizations to design and delivery of programs and funding decisions. Our goal is to spur more youth-led, youth-driven efforts across the nation. We know from our research that today’s young people want these types of programs, and we’re excited to help meet that challenge.”
Greg Weatherford II
Youth Empowerment Program Officer, The Allstate Foundation
Resource Library
The Youth Service Resource Library is a collection of resources such as guidance documents, research, tools, and websites to to consider when designing delivering, and engaging in youth-led, youth-driven service experiences.
If you have a resource you would like us to consider for inclusion in the Resource Library, please email info@expandingleadership.org