The Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs (IWGYP) is composed of representatives from 17 federal agencies that support programs and services focusing on youth. The IWGYP seeks to promote achievement of positive results for at-risk youth through the following activities:

• Promoting enhanced collaboration at the federal, state, and local levels, including with faith-based and other community organizations, as well as among families, schools and communities, in order to leverage existing resources and improve outcomes;
• Disseminating information about critical resources, including evidence-based programs, to assist interested citizens and decision-makers, particularly at the community level, to plan, implement, and participate in effective strategies for at-risk youth;
• Developing an overarching strategic plan for federal youth policy, as well as recommendations for improving the coordination, effectiveness and efficiency of youth programs, using input from community stakeholders, including youth; and
• Producing a federal website to promote effective community-based efforts to reduce the factors that put youth at risk and to provide high-quality services to at-risk youth.

The IWGYP identifies and engages key government, private, and nonprofit organizations that play a role in improving the coordination and effectiveness of programs serving youth. These partnerships and collaborations provide mechanisms to obtain feedback on how federal initiatives are translated at the local level; keep organizations informed about federal funding opportunities; and provide the IWGYP with communication mechanisms to reach regional, state, and local programs.

Interagency Initiatives

The IWGYP has also begun to identify other promising federal, interagency initiatives. Below are examples of such interagency collaborations:

• The Federal Mentoring Council coordinates mentoring programs across the federal government.
• Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention brings together federal programs related to juvenile delinquency prevention, detention or care for unaccompanied juveniles, and missing and exploited children.
• Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking works to reduce and prevent underage drinking.
• The Teen Dating Violence Federal Workgroup coordinates efforts to support healthy relationships and reduce dating violence among teens.

Membership

Membership of the IWGYP includes staff from the 17 federal agencies listed below.

• U.S. Department of Agriculture
• U.S. Department of Commerce
• U.S. Department of Defense
• U.S. Department of Education
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Chair)
• U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• U.S. Department of Justice (Vice-Chair)
• U.S. Department of Labor
• U.S. Department of State
• U.S. Department of the Interior
• U.S. Department of Transportation
• Corporation for National and Community Service
• National Science Foundation
• Office of National Drug Control Policy
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• U.S. Small Business Administration

For more information, contact the WorkingGrouponYouth@hhs.gov.