Practice

From idea to action: 5 strategies to build students’ relationships

By Julia Freeland Fisher, Reprinted from the Christensen Institute By now, many educators have probably heard about the sweeping Nature study that revealed that whom you interacted with as you grew up is a major determinant of future economic success. Specifically, children who had connections with peers from higher-income families ended up with higher incomes […]

WT Grant Foundation: Emergency Exits: Avenues for New Research to Improve Youth Outcomes after COVID

By Anya Kamenetz, reprinted from the William T. Grant Foundation Journalist Anya Kamenetz is a writer who makes extensive use of research in her reporting—so much so that, in 2022, the American Educational Research Association recognized her with its Excellence In Media Reporting On Education Research Award. But as she learned while reporting on the […]

How Building Relationship Skills Supports Student Success

By and reprinted from the Search Institute Young people develop resilience to face life’s challenges when they have at least one well-rounded, strong, and sustained relationship in their lives. And they begin to thrive when they experience a broader web of relationships in their homes, schools, programs, and communities. But developmentally influential relationships do not […]

The Benefits of Virtually Mentoring Youth

By and reprinted from the Annie E. Casey Foundation Youth men­tor­ing pro­grams were dri­ven to adapt and embrace vir­tu­al options dur­ing the COVID-19 pan­dem­ic. A study — fund­ed by the Annie E. Casey Foun­da­tion — deliv­ers insights that mem­bers in the men­tor­ing field can use to refine their vir­tu­al approach­es and inform fur­ther innovation. Men­tor­ing […]

WT Grant Foundation: Reducing Educational Inequality After the COVID-19 Pandemic

By Adam Gamoran and Richard J. Murnane, reprinted from the William T. Grant Foundation When President Barack Obama declared in December 2013 that the stifling combination of growing inequality and lack of upward mobility constituted “the defining challenge of our time,” he pointed to education as a pathway to economic opportunity (Obama, 2013).1 Nevertheless, the […]

‘Say the Right Thing’ by Kenji Yoshino and David Glasgow: Rules for better identity conversations

Yoshino, K. & Glasgow, D. (2023). Say the Right Thing: How to Talk About Identity, Diversity, and Justice. ‎ Atria Books. By Kevin J. Delaney, reprinted from charter Conversations about race, gender, sexual orientation, and other aspects of individual identity are arguably more common in workplaces today than in the past. Many people aren’t equipped […]

Best-in-class communications strategies

By and reprinted from the AXIOS HQ newsletter Last week, 600+ professionals joined CEO Roy Schwartz as he caught up with two Axios HQ clients to learn more about the communications strategies helping them keep their staff and communities connected. We’ve consolidated 3 key takeaways: 1. Establish what’s essential: Your audience wants what they need. […]

E-Mentoring Success Guide

By and reprinted from MENTOR In this brief, MENTOR highlights a few key themes for organizations considering or beginning to integrate strategies for keeping youth connected virtually. This guide spotlights the resources needed and the approaches to consider when building infrastructure to support connections, especially during the most challenging times. Though in-person programs are vital, […]

Creating Better Opportunities for Young People

By and reprinted from Mentoring Europe The OECD Council adopted the Recommendation on Creating Better Opportunities for Young People in June 2022, with the aim of improving youth measures and outcomes. The recommendation emphasizes government-wide strategies and policy principles that focus on skills and competencies, labor market outcomes, social inclusion, youth well-being, and trust in […]

We Meet Them Where They Are: The Importance of Mentoring as a Component of Youth Gang Violence Intervention

By National Gang Center, Reprinted from the National Mentoring Resource Center “Gangs meet kids where they are. We have to do the same thing” (Amber Govan, Carter’s Crew). This statement captures the valuable relationship between youth violence intervention professionals and the young people with whom they work. When people think about violence intervention efforts, they […]