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The Evaluation of the Assets for Colorado Youth Initiative
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PROJECT LEAD:
Suzanne Kennedy Leahy, Ph.D.
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(303) 839-9422 or (800) 279-2070, ext. 124
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sleahy@omni.org
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TIMELINE:
July 2000- November 2002
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CONTENT AREA:
Advancement of Youth Development and Child Prevention Services
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FUNDER:
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CLIENT:
The Colorado Trust
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AUDIENCE:
The evaluation of the Assets for Colorado Youth Initiative will be of interest to youth-serving organizations, schools, foundations, researchers and other entities concerned with positive youth development, specifically the asset framework developed by Search Institute.
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:
Qualitative Methods
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OVERVIEW:
Between 1997 and 2002, The Colorado Trust committed over $10 million dollars to a statewide initiative dedicated to promoting the use of the 40 developmental assets. Assets, identified by the Search Institute, are considered the fundamental building blocks of positive youth development.
In 2000, The Colorado Trust contracted OMNI to assess the work of Assets for Colorado Youth (ACY) - the agency spearheading efforts to promote asset building in Colorado - and the unfolding of the asset movement in the state. The evaluation focused on exploring four main areas:
- ACY's role in helping individuals and organizations use the asset framework in their work,
- The process of asset integration and transformation among individuals and within organizations,
- The reach of the asset movement in Colorado, and
- Emerging evidence regarding the impacts of asset building on youth.
The evaluation utilized the following methods: key informant interviews, youth focus groups, site visits and other participant observation techniques, document reviews and surveys. Key findings emerging from the evaluation included the following:
- Organizations that integrated assets most deeply tended to engage youth as partners, not just as participants of programs - a finding that was linked to enhanced organizational effectiveness.
- Asset champions played an important role in the spread of assets. These messengers helped others understand the connections between every day actions and building assets - a finding linked to the social change process of empowerment.
- Within five years of the beginning of the initiative, OMNI was able to identify over 600 entities that reported using, or supporting the use of, the asset framework.
- Youth focus group participants indicated that asset building had positive impacts on their sense of belonging, relationships with adults, self-confidence and view of the future. Youth observed that they had developed greater empathy for others, a value of community service, and enhanced sense of self-efficacy.
- ACY supported this work and the impacts observed through:
- The cultural adaptation of the asset framework, which facilitated the promotion of assets within communities of color, and
- The strategic targeting of diverse sectors through presentations and trainings.
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LINKS:
For more information about the Assets for Colorado Youth Initiative and/or other initiatives designed to promote positive youth development, please contact The Colorado Trust:
http://www.thecoloradotrust.org
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