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Ready Thoughts Newsletters
September 20, 2013
By now, schools are back in session across the nation. Here we share Karen Pittman's excitement that expanded learning efforts and better use of data about young people are coming together.
July 28, 2013
What if we combined education indicators with youth development indicators to create a holistic early warning system?
February 21, 2013
Last week brought the sad passing of Richard Murphy, an innovator in American youth work. Here we share reflections about Richard’s work from his friend Karen Pittman, CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment, along with links to other reflections and stories.
September 20, 2012
The past few years have brought a renewal and reframing of two powerful American ideas: collective action and individual success. And now these ideas are coming together at the intersection of "collective impact" and "opportunity youth." Rarely do we have such an chance to combine concepts that could fundamentally change how decision makers think about policy, practice and human potential.
April 10, 2012
Karen Pittman discusses the implications of a new study of the Youth Program Quality Intervention, a data-driven continuous improvement model for afterschool programs. The study shows that afterschool program quality can be measured, and that a quality improvement system can work across different types of systems and settings.
February 15, 2012
If we are going to reach people's hearts with stories of how we are changing the odds for young people, Karen Pittman says we must harness the power of one: Not only the story of one youth or one family, but also of one school system, one neighborhood, one coalition, one community. And we must tell stories that start with an individual young person but unfold to reveal our complex agenda for change.
January 30, 2012
Youth development expert Karen Pittman reviews a new book about college access and success.
December 1, 2011
The concept of expanded learning is gaining new traction all over the country - and that, ironically, should worry many of us who have been promoting it for years.
October 4, 2011
You wouldn't expect an organization of retired generals to publicly take on the issue of how well third graders read. But the group called Misson: Readiness has done just that, and all of us who carry out Ready by 21 strategies or simply care about youth should take heed.
August 21, 2011
In this issue Karen Pittman, President and CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment, takes a look at the KIDS COUNT Data Book produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. She makes the case that supports for children and youth need to extend beyond the education pipeline and into young adulthood.