Equitable Youth Participation and Youth Development

6. Equitable youth participation and youth development


Strategy	Best practices	Examples, resources, and tools	Evidence-based	Strategy eligible for HHAP funds and core outcome(s)	Jurisdiction type (general, urban, suburban, rural, tribal)	Specific subpopulations (e.g., LGBTQ+ youth, pregnant or parenting youth...)
6.1 Meaningfully and equitably involve youth in all decision-making processes, as well as in the design, implementation, and evaluation of programs	6.1.1 Involve youth in program planning, execution, evaluation, and governance. Involvement can be done through surveys, focus groups, advisory committees, board participation, volunteer or paid employment and other professional development opportunities, and peer outreach and mentoring programs.	Youth engagement in evaluation YHDP Community Resources Youth Engagement Toolkit RAISE Youth Engagement Toolkit Series Meaningful Youth Engagement Resource Guide	No formal evaluation, but there is ample expert consensus among the reviewed documents mentioning these strategies as best practices to prevent, address, and end youth homelessness	Yes, part of the equity foundation pillar Core outcome: Social- Emotional Well-being	General	All Youth
	6.1.2 Implement a Youth Advisory Board. Fairly compensate youth for their work and leadership in the YABs.				General	All Youth
	6.1.3 Increase funding for Youth Advisory Boards.				General	All Youth
	6.1.7 Ensure youth perspective is incorporated and valued in the process of building the system of early response to youth homelessness. 6.1.8 Give youth a living wage for their work and time. 6.1.9 Implement innovative ways of paying undocumented youth or youth without a Social Security Number. For example, labeling the payment as a supportive service. 6.1.10 Increase mentorship and leadership opportunities for youth with lived experience of homelessness to help youth develop robust community networks. For example, by expanding and strengthening mentorship initiatives to support youth experiencing homelessness and expanding opportunities for youth to participate on boards and advisory councils.	True Colors Youth Collaboration Toolkit Authentic Youth Engagement within Organizations: What Does It Look Like in Practice? Berkeley YPAR Hub YAB Advocacy Toolkit

Programs that equitably and meaningfully involve youth from the start and throughout the whole process are more responsive to
the distinct needs of youth experiencing homelessness and, thus, are more effective at achieving program goals (30). Youth have
unique perspectives and they are the experts on their experiences, needs, and interactions with organizations and systems (30).
Youth should be compensated for their work, leadership, and involvement.

meaningful strategies for involving youth

Resource:

Homelessness Hub Engaging Youth

True Colors Youth Collaboration Toolkit

6. Equitable youth participation and youth development

Topics