Public opinion polls show that people are concerned about kids today, but often hesitate to support youth programs because they don't think it's easy to succeed with kids—especially kids at risk for failure. But a 1999 report by American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) may be able to guide policy-makers and practitioners in crafting services that improve young people's lives. More Things That Do Make a Difference for Youth offers 46 evaluation summaries of successful programs and identifies the key principles that make these programs work.

The compendium's release marks a time when the gap between parents' work schedules and students' school schedules can amount to 20 to 25 hours per week. Studies show that children without adult supervision are at a significantly greater risk of truancy from school, stress, poor grades, risk-taking behavior and substance abuse. That's one reason that Congress supported the Administration's 21st Century Community Learning Centers program—an effort to keep children safe and help them learn after school—by appropriating $200 million for after-school programs in fiscal year 1999, up from $40 million in 1998. AYPF's report could be a critical tool in attracting further federal funding and public support.

AYPF reviewed over 150 evaluations for possible inclusion in the volume. According to Donna Walker James, senior program associate, the editors selected programs based on the way evaluations were conducted. "We looked for programs that had used control groups or comparison groups for evaluation," Walker James says, "and tried to limit it to those looking at outcomes for kids—like employment, earnings, academic achievement, and improvement in behavior."

The compendium lists the following key principles for successful programs:

• implementation quality
• caring, knowledegable adults
• high standards and expectations
• parent/guardian involvement
• importance of community
• holistic approach
• youth as resources/community service and service-learning
• work-based learning
• long-term services/support and follow-up

The report is a follow-up to AYPF's 1997 publication, Some Things Do Make a Difference for Youth, which listed 6 components of successful programs. One important addition, according to Walker James, is a "holistic approach" to youth development. Rather than having a single focus, she says, programs used a variety of strategies to get at all aspects of well-being. Many offered follow-through and long-term approaches to youth needs.

Joe Podilla of the National Guard Challenge Program, a military-based training program featured in this year's publication, agrees that a holistic approach is critical for program success. "Unless you touch on the whole person, you haven't really done anything to change their behavior or what got them here in the first place," Podilla says.

The National Guard Challenge Program operates for 16-to-18-year-old high school dropouts in 20 communities across the country. Participants in the program have demonstrated increased reading and math levels, high retention rate, reduced likelihood of arrest and increased GED-completions. The program provides a five-month residential phase, assistance with job placement and school applications, mentoring, leadership development, and a focus on academic and vocational education.

According to Podilla, his program emphasizes community involvement—a common approach of successful programs. Says Podilla, "Our folks sit down with community leaders and decide what kind of community service these places could use." The National Guard Challenge Program is now starting its seventh year, and according to Podilla, "Communities are head over heels for these programs."

Another difference in this year's compendium, according to Walker James, is that a substantial number of the programs selected demonstrate active participation by parents or guardians. It was more than traditional parent involvement," she says. "Staff made home visits to parents, parents came to classes—programs put quite an emphasis on that." An impressive component, especially with that 20 to 25-hour discrepancy between kids' free time and parents' work schedules.

Walker James cautions any quick conclusions about the difference in key principles between the first and second compendium. "It doesn't say that programs are doing different things than before—although it may indicate progress, or a difference in what evaluators are looking at," she says. "They're not earth-shattering principles, but it's proof that they're tried and true principles."