READY BY 21TM calls on states and communities to change the odds for children and youth by changing the way they do business. Working in partnership with national organizations representing the business, government, education and nonprofit sectors, the Forum for Youth Investment provides frameworks, coaching and tools to help leaders think differently, act differently and act together. The READY BY 21TM Big Picture Approach helps leaders – from young people to parents, program directors to policy makers – bring precision to their passion, ensuring that all young people are ready by 21 – ready for college, work and life.
NEWS
Introduction to the Ready by 21 Challenge Webinar, Thursday, July 10, 3:00-4:00 PM EDT
Ready by 21 isn’t a program or a campaign or even an initiative. It is a challenge to all who care about children and youth to think differently – to learn a different way to approach all of the tasks associated with trying to manage, make or measure change at any level from the classroom to the capitol – so that they can act differently.
July 2, 2008
Forum Works with State Teams Across the Country to Improve Youth Policy
The Forum, along with the National Conference of State Legislaturs and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, recently completed the Fourth Annual Youth Policy Institute. The Institutes bring together state policymakers and is designed to help state governments obtain better outcomes from their youth policies and programs.
June 19, 2008
Ready by 21 Big Picture Messages & Frameworks Webinar Presentation
There are numerous child and youth development frameworks being used by youth serving organizations and government entities.
June 19, 2008
Dropout Prevention Summit Planning Guide
The America’s Promise Alliance is supporting 50 state and at least 50 city Dropout Prevention Summits to be held by 2010. The purposes of the Dropout Prevention Summits are many, but the primary intention is to increase public awareness of the dropout and college-readiness crisis.
May 22, 2008
Aligning Illinois DHS and Ready by 21 Frameworks
Forum staff members, Merita Irby and Karen Finn traveled to Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, May 19 and 20, where they faciliated trainings with leaders from the Illinois Department of Human Services' Division of Community Health and Prevention.
May 21, 2008
Mason City Kicks Off Quality Counts Initiative with Adolescent Youth Workers Summit
On May 8, Karen Pittman traveled to Mason City, Iowa where she delivered the keynote at the first annual Adolescent Youth Workers Summit that kicked off Mason City's participation in the Ready by 21 Quality Counts Initiative. There, Karen spoke to over 100 youth work practitioners and community leaders about the importance of improving the quality and reach of youth programs.
May 13, 2008
Forum Works with State Teams Across the Country to Improve Youth Policy
The Forum, along with the National Conference of State Legislaturs and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, recently completed the Fourth Annual Youth Policy Institute. The Institutes bring together state policymakers and is designed to help state governments obtain better outcomes from their youth policies and programs.
June 19, 2008
Ready by 21 Big Picture Messages & Frameworks Webinar Presentation
There are numerous child and youth development frameworks being used by youth serving organizations and government entities.
June 19, 2008
Ready by 21 Presentation at United for Children Event
On Thursday, May 28th, Karen Pittman spoke to an audience of 200 community and business leaders at the United for Children event in Boston. Karen presented the Ready by 21 framework and spoke of the importance of using a big picture approach to align resources for children and youth, a message that echoed Mayor Memnino’s welcome remarks that called for integration.
May 29, 2008
United Way of America's Community Leaders Conference
On May 15, Karen Pittman moderated a panel – Preparing Youth for Success in a Global Economy – at the Community Leaders Conference hosted by United Way of America in Baltimore. Karen spoke about the Ready by 21 framework data on youth readiness that can be applied to work supporting youth.
May 21, 2008
Importance of Community/School Partnerships Keynote at AASA
Merita Irby gave a presentation at the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) State Leadership Conference on May 2, 2008, in San Francisco, CA. The speech discussed the importance on the role of community/school partnerships and focused on a new way of doing business outlined in the “Leadership for Change” report from the National Superintendent of the Year Forum, 2007.
May 14, 2008
Iowa Dropout Prevention Summit
As part of the Forum's commitment to support Quality Counts sites, the Forum, along with Iowa Collaboration for Youth Development, co-sponsored Governor Culver's dropout prevention summit aimed at creating urgency and developing action plans to respond to the dropout crisis of minority youth in 15 Iowa communities. Karen Pittman traveled to Des Moines on May 7
May 13, 2008