How are young people urging their peers to avoid drugs? As part of National Drug Facts Week (Jan. 27 - Feb. 2), SparkAction (a division of the Forum for Youth Investment) sought nominations of youth who were creatively finding ways to dispel myths about drug use and abuse.
After reading through dozens of nominations and counting up the thousands of social media votes that poured in, SparkAction is delighted to present the 2014 Top 24 Under 24 Drug Mythbusters. The Top Mythbusters have:
Spearheaded the creation of a Students Against Destructive Decisions chapter
Helped four young people kick their drug habit and prevented the suicide of a teen through youth group sessions
Created a prescription drug collection program
Shared their own long-term recovery story through TedX talks and other presentations
News & Resources
Closing the Achievement Gap After School
Deborah Lowe Vandell, education school dean at the University of California at Irvine, has released new research on the value of afterschool programs. It shows that sustained participation in afterschool activities during kindergarten through fifth grades is linked to higher math scores, with low-income students reaping especially large benefits. Participation in high-quality programs also correlated with higher grades and a better work ethic. Read an abstract of the study or browse the findings.
Ready by 21 National Meeting
The third annual Ready by 21 National Meeting will bring together hundreds of leaders like you who are working to improve the odds for young people through collective impact initiatives, policy alignment and program quality improvement. Find out more about:
"The panel of students sharing their successes in real time was phenomenal! That will stick with me - I get goosebumps just thinking back."
Achieving Collective Impact: How Partnerships Change Community Outcomes
Join this three-day workshop to learn how to create the five conditions of collective impact through clear, sequenced steps - from partnership creation, community engagement and goal setting through to problem analysis, intervention design, implementation, evaluation and improvement. Participants will learn how to take a Big Picture Approach to tackle a range of underlying issues in their communities, and focus on implementing the nuts and bolts of collective impact strategies.