Preparing Youth Crossing 111 Y

There is a growing concern that young people in the United States are reaching the age of eighteen unprepared for the primary challenge of young adulthood: successfully joining the workforce of continuing on to higher education or vocational training in hoped of achieving financial autonomy. An alarming number of young people leave school without a diploma, and many of those still in school are disinterested or disengaged. Many have not found outside career-related interests and will enter the next phase of their lives without the needed experience and skills to enter the workforce or the social capital to help them along the way. In order to see outcomes improve for older youth, especially low-income youth of color, we must have a better understanding of their developmental needs in order to create supported pathways for their eventual transition to adulthood. This will require new policies to improve coordination at the systems level and increased attention to expanding their access to supportive institutions and services. This volume of New Directions for Youth Development takes a step in that direction by examining the developmental issues facing older youth and focusing on innovative strategies employed by programs across the country to better meet the needs of these youth. It also considers the implications for policymakers and funders in taking the support of older youth to scale.