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Transitions
Volume 14, No. 3,
April 2002
This Transitions is
also available in [PDF] format.
Tips for Partnering with Youth
By
Kayla Jackson, MPA, Director, HIV/STD Prevention Programs, Advocates
for Youth
- Treat
youth as partners. Ensure that all members of the group,
regardless of age, share the decision making power—equal
voice and equal vote.
- Welcome,
encourage, and affirm contributions and insights from
both youth and adults.
- Encourage
everyone to recognize the mutual benefits of youth and
adults working together in partnership. Ensure that all
the adult members "buy into" youth's participating
in the process.
- Be selective
about the youth and the adults who participate.
- Establish
high expectations for everyone involved. Don't patronize
youth by lowering expectations regarding them. On the
other hand, don't expect more from young people than
from adults.
- Provide
training and build the capacities of both youth and adults.
- Schedule
meetings when youth can attend and in locations accessible
to them. Keep young people informed about plans and meeting
times.
- Include
room for growth and advancement for experienced youth
and adults.
- Don't
make assumptions about what individuals—of any
age—are like.
- Take
the time and make the effort to develop a good relationship
with youth before expecting much. This work
is often new to youth; take the time to explain. Youth
may interpret adults' being abrupt and hurried as a sign
of disinterest in youth's participation; so, go slow
and explain what's going on.
- Remember
that there are times when youth need to say, "No." Their
education, relationships, communities, and extracurricular
activities are important, too.
Transitions (ISSN 1097-1254) © 2002, is a quarterly publication of Advocates for Youth—Helping young people make safe and responsible decisions about sex. For permission to reprint, contact Transitions' editor at 202.419.3420.
Editor: Sue Alford
Click here to view the Publications Catalog and/or
to order this publication.
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