YCB to Host Second Youth Town Hall Forum on December 18th 2006

The YCB will host the second annual Youth Town Hall Forum on December 18 th 2006 from 5:30-7:30 pm. The event will be held at the Twin City Event Center, located on the lower floor of the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Building, at 2117 West River Road. The event will be co-sponsored with Northway Community Trust and held in partnership with Hennepin County School Success Initiative, Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Youthline, Yo! the Movement and Youth Action Crews.

The event will bring together policymakers and community leaders to hear from and talk with young people about making Minneapolis an even better city for youth. The focus of the Forum will be on the 2006 Youth Action Crews who conducted youth resource mapping; they have asked that adults to be ready to “listen, take note and take action” with them on community needs. A Youth Action Crew is a team of young people who work together to identify or “map” the supports, opportunities and services in their neighborhoods and interview other young people about their interests and concerns. There were six Youth Action Crews in operation during the Summer and Fall of 2006. The crews mapped the Camden area, Near North, Central, Bottineau, Cedar Riverside, and Longfellow neighborhoods. These crews of young people in turn interviewed nearly 500 youth.

Please RSVP to this event by emailing ycb@ci.minneapolis.mn.us or calling our event registration line at 612 673-2708.

YCB Bids Farewell and Good Luck to Board Member Amy Klobuchar

After being elected to the US Senate, Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar is concluding her term on the board and taking her passion and skills to Washington D.C. as a U.S. Senator. As Hennepin County Attorney, Senator-elect Klobuchar has served as a YCB Board member since 1999. Klobuchar took an active role on the YCB, and served on the Executive Committee in 2005. Her strong interest in efforts to improve student attendance and reduce truancy distinguished her service on the board. Her leadership will be greatly missed on the YCB. We congratulate and wish Senator-elect Klobuchar good luck in her new role – serving the people of the entire State of Minnesota in Washington.

YCB to Host Ward Conversations 

This summer the Minneapolis Youth Coordinating Board resolved to examine and address policy issues related to “Out-of-School Time”, strengthening the supports and opportunities for children and youth during the non-school hours.  Currently, the YCB is actively gathering the perspective of various stakeholder groups. During the next two months the YCB, in partnership with members of the Minneapolis City Council, using Wards as an organizing structure, will be convening facilitated conversations with child and youth program providers to deepen our understanding of the child and youth opportunities in a community, discuss how we best utilize the resources we have, and explore what else is needed to have opportunities available to all children and youth . The intent is to identify what each of us – public and private sector – can do individually and collectively to give children what they need to learn and develop. Ensuring that Minneapolis children and youth have access to places during the non-school hours that are safe, fun and enriching is of primary concern to all of us. Our public and non-profit providers offer an array of programs, yet we know we can do a better job of coordinating and leveraging resources.

Minneapolis City Council Passes Youth Violence Prevention Resolution

Beginning in June 2006, a group of 28 community leaders and elected and appointed local government leaders met 3 times to begin the work of identifying key components of violence prevention activities and developing indicators to measure progress. This group strongly supported recognition of youth violence as a public health crisis that requires a long term, comprehensive and strategic response as well as the establishment of a Youth Violence Prevention Steering Committee to oversee further efforts to develop and implement that plan. Work began to garner support for this work through public policy and the establishment of a resolution that recognized youth violence as a public health problem and establishd a Youth Violence Prevention Steering Committee. On November 17, the City Council unanimously passed this resolution.

The Youth Violence Prevention Steering Committee will begin work in early 2007 to develop a multi year implementation plan and timelines and assign responsibility for implementation of plan components; define and measure community-wide outcomes; coordinate City and County efforts to prevent youth violence; facilitate cross-community partnerships and communication among various stakeholder groups; identify gaps in services, policy and funding; and advise the City Council, Mayor and other policy makers and funders on needs for resources, programs and policies.

As outlined in the resolution, the Steering Committee will consist of no more than 15 members, up to seven members appointed by the Mayor and up to eight members appointed by the City Council, to include: representatives from the communities most affected by youth violence including at least one representative each from a faith community and the business community; elected officials representing the City and the County; appointed officials representing public safety and public health. The membership of the panel shall reflect the ethnic and the cultural diversity of Minneapolis and be co-chaired by one community representative and one government representative. The membership of the panel shall include one member of the Youth Coordinating Board. Applications and nomination forms can be found on the City of Minneapolis website at www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/boards-and-commissions will be taken until December 22 nd

YCB Thanks Carol Miller & Jan Fondell 

Since 2001, the YCB has been extremely fortunate to have Carol Miller serving as its Deputy Director for Early Childhood. Carol has served this role while on half-time loan from Hennepin County, where she is a long-time manager and expert on early childhood issues.

Starting January 2007, Carol will be relinquishing her duties as YCB Deputy Director, due to her promotion to Area Manager in the County's new Strategic Initiatives and Community Engagement Department (SICE). She will, however, remain actively engaged with the YCB's school readiness initiative through her ongoing leadership and involvement in early childhood and education issues through SICE.

Over the past several years, Carol has become a highly respected advocate for the needs of Minneapolis' youngest children. She helped secure $2 million in federal funding for the YCB's school readiness initiative; released two “So…how are the children?” reports on the school readiness of Minneapolis children; and chaired and participated in numerous committees on behalf of the YCB.

We owe many thanks to Carol for her work on behalf of the YCB and Minneapolis children. We will miss her regular presence, but look forward to ongoing partnerships and connections. Thank you, Carol!

Jan Fondell , Youth Development Specialist, has been employed in a shared position between the YCB and the Minneapolis Department of Health and Family Support focused on youth development and other adolescent health related issues. Jan focused on strengthening youth development opportunities in Minneapolis. Specifically Jan provided oversight and managed the activities of the Youth in Minneapolis After-School Programs (YMAP) funding; provided technical assistance and advisory assistance to neighborhood groups and community organizations regarding the application of youth development principles; and engaged in policy and program development regarding youth development and other health-related issues.

A strengthened focus by MDHFS on disengaged youth, along with the passage of the Youth Violence Prevention Resolution means that as of January, Jan will become the full time employee of the MDHFS and will no longer split her time with the YCB. While she will be taking on a new role, Jan will remain connected with the work of the YCB and the Children and Youth Agenda. We look forward to continuing this relationship and seeing the benefits to Minneapolis youth. Thank you, Jan!