Identifying Practice Components of Youth Councils: Contributions of Theory
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Identifying Practice Components of Youth Councils: Contributions of Theory Mary Elizabeth Collins1 · Astraea Augsberger1 · Whitney Gecker1 Published online: 26 May 2018 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2018
Abstract Social workers are involved in numerous efforts to engage youth in programs, communities, and civic life. One potential strategy has focused on engagement and empowerment of youth through the form of youth councils. Multiple theoretical frames have characterized the scholarly literature. This has limited the conceptual coherence of the field. In this paper, we report empirical data on the operation of several youth councils. We analyze the data to identify the implicit frameworks in use and apply the data from our study to sort practice components within frameworks. This effort is designed to improve conceptualization of youth councils, to inform the development of councils, and eventually to improve outcomes of councils. Keywords Youth council · Youth participation · Youth civic engagement · Policy practice · Community practice
Background and Purpose Young people face a myriad of challenges in the contemporary U.S. Poverty and inequality cause many youth to struggle to achieve a positive trajectory toward economic stability and social well-being (Coalition on Human Needs, 2010). Some youth (e.g., youth of color, LGBTQ youth, youth with disabling conditions) have significantly greater challenges related to poverty, oppression, health conditions, or other factors (Anderson & Finch, 2017; Saewyc, 2011; Savage, McConnell, Emerson, & Llewellyn, 2014). Targeted interventions (e.g., after school programs) are available in some communities for at-risk youth but many scholars suggest that more universally available efforts to engage young people are needed (Checkoway, 2011). Social workers are involved in numerous efforts to engage youth in programs, communities, and civic life. This commitment began early within the roots of social work in settlement house programming (Addams, 1910). It continues in the modern day with a variety of efforts in community practice (e.g., youth organizing), clinical practice (e.g., involvement in care planning), and policy practice (e.g., participation in policy advocacy) to intentionally link young people * Mary Elizabeth Collins [email protected] 1
Boston University School of Social Work, 264 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215, USA
with various opportunities to participate on behalf of their own interests. In this paper, we focus specifically on civic engagement in the form of municipal youth councils. Youth councils are one possible mechanism to engage young people in decisionmaking at the local level. Youth councils have been defined as formal or quasi-formal bodies that advise and interact with city officials (Checkoway & Aldana, 2013). Martin, Pittman, Ferber, and McMahon (2007) offer a similar definition but limit the description to “formal bodies” made up of youth “who advise high-level decision makers and elected officials” (p. 8). They al
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