The Center for the Study of Social Policy yesterday announced five organizations nationwide to be inducted into the Youth Thrive™ Learning Community. Nebraska Children and Families Foundation was one of the five organizations.
The purpose of the Youth Thrive Learning Community is to convene organizations that are leading the way in youth development and child well-being and provide them a framework to strengthen their policies, programs, training, services and operations to support the healthy development of youth in their care.
“Well-being is a cornerstone of the efforts by both the public and private sectors to help youth in crisis,” said Susan Notkin, CSSP Associate Director and Youth Thrive team lead. “This learning community will begin to lay an even stronger foundation for ensuring that whenever a young person is involved with a public system, they will thrive, be safe, affirmed and healthy and have the tools they need to be successful adults.”
Nebraska Children is a public-private partnership that has received national recognition for its work helping young people with foster care and juvenile justice experience become independent, contributing adults. Just this summer, the organization was awarded a multi-million dollar federal grant to expand older youth work to rural communities across Nebraska.
“We at Nebraska Children are honored and excited to be part of the Youth Thrive Learning Community,” said Jason Feldhaus, Vice President of the Connected Youth Initiative at Nebraska Children. “We’re focused on continuous quality improvement and believe this framework will strengthen our efforts and provide more positive outcomes for the children, families and young people we serve.”
Nebraska Children is already working in seven Nebraska communities to develop systems for improving child well-being. The technical assistance and support from the Youth Thrive™ Learning Community will only strengthen those efforts.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for Nebraska to promote, measure and improve child well-being over the long term,” said Jennifer Skala, Senior Vice President at Nebraska Children.
About Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP)
Established in 1979 as part of the University of Chicago, The Center for the Study of Social Policy works to secure equal opportunities and better futures for all children and families, especially those most often left behind. Underlying all of the work is a vision of child, family and community well-being. It’s a unifying framework for the many policy, systems reform and community change activities in which CSSP engages. Find out more at www.CSSP.org.
Nebraska Children's mission is to maximize the potential of Nebraska’s children, youth, and families through collaboration and community-centered impact.
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