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Young people make a better Vermont.

The Vermont Youth Project (VYP) is a statewide initiative supporting communities with building an environment that embraces positive youth development. As the state developer and manager of VYP, Vermont Afterschool helps participating communities establish local coalitions centered around positive youth development, creating localized plans to address risk and protective factors of youth, supporting youth voice and engagement, and building cross-sector partnerships and collaboration. Communities that participate in VYP commit to empowering youth and creating healthy accessible spaces for youth to be themselves, engage with peers, learn new skills, and connect with caring adults.

VYP focuses upstream by exploring the societal and environmental factors (“causes of the causes”) that lead to risk and protective factors that influence the behaviors of youth. With this information, communities are able to create strategies that support increasing protective factors in youth through healthy environments.

Risk Factors

Data from the most recent VYP Survey found key risk factors facing today’s youth in Vermont.

 

 

 

Positive Youth Development and Protective Factors

Positive youth development emphasizes building on youth’s strengths, creating opportunities to help youth achieve goals; fosters healthy relationships; and promotes protective factors. There are many domains that youth interact with frequently and they can have protective impacts on a youth’s well-being.

Evidence-Based

VYP includes evidence-based efforts into the framework of its Vermont approach to positive youth development; including Iceland’s Planet Youth data tool, Finland’s youth voice efforts, and initiatives already working well in Vermont.

In 1998, Iceland had a crisis on its hands. 42% of 10th grade students were drunk in the past 30 days, 23% were daily smokers and 17% had tried cannabis. “We had the worst youth in the world,” states Jon Sigfusson, Director of Planet Youth and the Icelandic Center for Social Research and Analysis. Through coordinated community efforts, the country dramatically reduced youth substance abuse rates, rates of bullying and youth theft, and has created a community of connectedness among its citizens. Iceland researchers have worked with 30 countries to implement this effective prevention framework with great success. Over 900,000 youth surveys have been administered worldwide. Vermont was the first state in the nation to sign on with Planet Youth and VYP uses their data tool as the foundation of community-led efforts.
Finland believes that being a young person is a special time in a person’s life and encourages youth to find their voice, be engaged citizens, explore hobbies and interests, and connect with peers and caring adults. The field of Youth Work is a trained profession in Finland and youth workers frequently interact with young people to provide support and resources as they grow up. Finland believes that every youth should have a hobby and local youth centers in every neighborhood encourage creativity and exploration. Additionally, youth voice is encouraged and youth have a voice in laws and decisions that impact them in the government. Youth councils are mandated by law in Finland and provide a space for youth to use their voice on issues that impact them.
Annual data helps local communities determine what initiatives and strategies are working well in addition to identifying gaps. Full implementation VYP communities are encouraged to complete community asset profiling to explore perceptions and accessibility of third space opportunities. All of this work is supported on the local level by strong inclusive coalitions representing many sectors.

Data Driven

At the foundation of VYP are the annual key data findings. VYP collaborates with Iceland’s prevention efforts and uses their Planet Youth data tool to support communities in positive youth development. In the five communities implementing the model at the fullest level, local youth take a survey in the fall and communities receive the key data findings eight weeks later so they know what’s going on with their youth right now. 

The Enosburg and Richford VYP is supported by a local community lead and cross-sector coalition. In year 1, Richford and Enosburg VYP supported community awareness on risk and protective factors of youth through virtual community meetings held in the late spring to talk about the local youth survey data. This brought community voices into the conversation about positive youth development strategies with third space opportunities rising to the top of priorities. Richford and Enosburg were the first VYP communities to have a youth council and created an empowering space for youth to have a voice in community strategies.

Contact: Heather Moore (heather.moore@fnesu.org)

Enosburg & Richford VYP Facebook Page
The Fair Haven VYP is supported by a local community lead and cross-sector coalition shared with the Rutland City VYP. In year 1, the Fair Haven VYP worked on increasing community awareness through local community meetings, increased understanding of third space offerings in their community by starting community asset mapping, and increased youth and family support during Covid-19 through projects such as summer activity boxes.

Contact: Nicole Rice (nrice@svuvt.org)
The Rutland City VYP is supported by a local community lead and cross-sector coalition shared with the Fair Haven VYP. Their coalition is comprised of over 40 organizations, parents, youth, and community stakeholders that represent all community sectors and work together to make Rutland City the best community for youth. In year 1, the Rutland City VYP worked on increasing community awareness through local community meetings, increased understanding of third space offerings in their community by starting community asset mapping, and increased youth and family support during Covid-19 through projects such as summer activity boxes.

Contact: Chris Hultquist (chris@mentorconnector.com)
The Swanton VYP is supported by local community leads and a local cross-sector coalition. In year 1, the Swanton VYP increased community awareness of positive youth development through social media messaging and handing out hundreds of data summaries at town meeting day.

Contacts: Betsy Cherrier (bcherrier@nmcinc.org) and Beth Ann Miller (BethAnn.Miller@mvsdschools.org)

Swanton VYP Facebook Page

Take Action

Here are a couple of great framing resources to push you to center youth as a positive force for good in our state and value them as they are.

Stay tuned for future workshops in the VYP training series. These online workshops, offered at no cost to participants, are typically open to parents/caregivers, third space program staff, community members, youth workers, coaches, and other partners.

Past Workshops:

Coaching Beyond Winning: Social Emotional Learning in Action

This workshop will focus on positive youth development in third space settings such as sports teams and afterschool activities. Topics include adolescent brain development, social emotional learning, resilience, and protective factors for primary prevention efforts.

Parent Collaboration and Co-Communication

Participants will learn about increasing the protective factors of youth through community parent collaboration and co-communication. Local and statewide data from the Vermont Youth Project survey will be presented along with supportive activities for participants to develop local strategy ideas to support parent collaboration and co-communication.

Third Space for Youth

Participants will learn the definition of third space, why it’s important in communities, and how to increase the protective factors of youth through the third space. Local and statewide data from the Vermont Youth Project survey will be presented along with supportive activities for participants to develop local strategy ideas to support the third space.

Substance Misuse and Youth Perceptions

Participants will learn about current youth responses regarding substance misuse and their perceptions around parental reactions and peer use. Local and statewide data from the Vermont Youth Project survey will be presented along with supportive activities for participants to develop local strategy ideas to support reducing substance misuse and addressing youth perceptions.