February 25, 2013
Q: I work with young people who often confide to me about their boyfriends or girlfriends. Sometimes the details don’t sound healthy to me. How can I know if a young person is in a violent dating relationship? And what can I do to help?
January 07, 2013
Q: At my youth-serving program, we stay in touch with youth over Facebook and Twitter. What should we do if we come across a suicidal posting on a client’s Facebook page or Twitter feed?
June 05, 2012
Q: I run a shelter for homeless teens. I’m thinking about moving to a “low-barrier” approach to working with youth, meaning that we won’t turn young people away because they’ve been drinking or using drugs. How can I get staff to buy into this change?
A: Ingrained in every good youth worker is the idea of “meeting young people where they’re at.” So...
May 25, 2012
Q: I work at an emergency shelter for runaway and homeless youth. My co-workers and I have heard that our community is putting in place “coordinated assessment” for all the homeless people in our area. Can you explain what that is? And how will it affect youth who come to our program for help?
May 09, 2012
Q. A young person who was staying in our emergency shelter for homeless youth recently passed away. We’ve offered counseling and support to youth. But our staff is still reeling and having trouble coping. How can we help them deal with their grief?
A. First, please accept our condolences. No matter the circumstances, the death of a young person is shocking and tragic.
March 15, 2012
Q: I work with homeless youth who are applying for college and need federal financial aid. Can they apply for student loans or grants without a parent's signature?
A: Yes. Young people can fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, as unaccompanied homeless youth if they
January 31, 2012
Q: Our transitional living program is, for the first time, planning to house youth in their own apartments around our city. What can we do to make sure our youth are good tenants and don't have issues with their landlords?
January 19, 2012
Q. “Most of the literature about how to best serve lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth lumps them all together. What are some tips for working with transgender and gender non-conforming youth?”
December 13, 2011
Q: A youth in our shelter was just diagnosed with HIV. How can we best help her? And how can we help other young people in the program who may not understand what it means to have HIV?
A: The best way to support this young woman is to first take stock of her situation, says Latisha James, who coordinates youth programs at The Women’s Collective, a Washington, DC, organization that provides...
November 15, 2011
Q: I think it's important for my youth-serving organization to be culturally competent in its dealings with all young people. But when it comes to Native youth, I'm not sure where to start.
A: For Tribal and non-Tribal organizations alike, cultural competency is essential to serving young people with respect and dignity. But with 564 Federally recognized Tribes in the United States,...
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