Service as Strategy: Combating Youth Unemployment
Abstract: Given the diversity and fluctuation of community and market needs, the promise of service as a strategy for addressing youth unemployment rests on its adaptability as a model as well as its ability to provide integrated or holistic solutions to the challenges both youth and their communities face. Well designed and implemented youth service programs that consider local contexts and engage youth in contributing to their communities’ development while building valuable work and life skills can be applied to nearly any context.
Top Tips
- Engaging multiple stakeholders in program design, implementation and evaluation
- Conduct an assessment to determine the most relevant areas for employment-oriented programs in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors
- Matching participants to program goals
- Consider programs such as Job Corps: Job/skills training programs are implemented outside the formal education system and are designed for individuals who are seeking work or want to enhance specific skills.
- Approach with a sector Focus: Job skills/training programs are less likely to produce significant results in the absence of a strong economic growth rate and job market and are rarely focused on the sectors that are likely to continue hiring in the face of reduced business activity.
- Match training with culturally sensitive curricula that challenge of youth unemployment.
- Actively engaging youth against the assumption that young people are passive clients
- Give youth opportunities to build skills and gain work experience.
- Change the Paradigm by engaging youth as resources for Change. Example: If they are building houses and community centers then they also learn construction-based skills.
Summer 2006, Innovations in Civic Partnership
Authors: Douglass, Alesi, McDowell, Hutter and Stroud
© 2006 Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP) is a non-profit social change organization that supports the development of innovative, high-quality youth civic engagement policies and programs both in the US and around the world.
