CFK reports from: Rayburn House Office Building
Event: Hearing on "Coordination Among Federal Youth Development Programs"
Organized by: The American Youth Policy Forum and the Campaign for Youth
Where/When: Washington, D.C., June 24, 2005
Witnesses and committee members at a hearing held by the House Subcommittee on Select Education discussed how coordinating federal, state and local efforts to help disadvantaged youth will increase efficiency and accountability.
The hearing on "Coordination Among Federal Youth Development Programs" focused on the Federal Youth Coordination Act (FYCA), legislation that would establish a centralized body to facilitate communication and collaboration among the 12 federal agencies that deal with youth programs and services. The Federal Youth Development Council would also help support coordination at the state level in areas such as child welfare, juvenile justice, foster care and public health.
Institutionalizing a coordinating body to oversee collaboration, reduce duplications and increase transparency among youth agencies would provide continuity, even as administrations change, Rep. Tom Osborne (R-NE) said.
The objective of the Federal Youth Development Council, he said, is to "serve more young people more efficiently than we already do."
The council's duties include enhancing communication among agencies, assessing youth needs and available support, setting quantifiable goals, targeting special populations and identifying model programs.
Osborne said a quarter of the nation's adolescents are in danger of never reaching adulthood due to family problems, drug and substance abuse and other obstacles. Danny K. Davis (D-IL), who testified after Osborne, noted that more than 30 percent of students entering high school never graduate. This number increases to 50 percent for racial minorities.
"The odds are often stacked against this age group," Davis said, adding that American society lacks an awareness of the setbacks and dangers that youth face.
FYCA is a product of the White House Task Force for Disadvantaged Youth, which President Bush established in 2003 to assess and improve federal youth policies. The task force, now dissolved, found that federal efforts to serve disadvantaged youth lacked coordination and focus.
The Federal Youth Development Council is intended to remedy the situation by serving as a structured coordinating force among interagency workgroups. The council would allow for an unprecedented level of youth involvement at a federal level, according to the FYCA Information Center [1]. Other council members include federal agency leaders and members from nonprofit and faith-based organizations.
Interagency coordination through a centralized structure such as the Federal Youth Development Council would improve communication, management and accountability, said Michael J. O'Grady, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
O'Grady, the first witness, also answered questions from subcommittee members concerning efforts to minimize errors, promote continuity, improve parental resources and ensure that money gets distributed for services at the ground level.
The hearing had four other panelists: Richard G. Moore of the Iowa Department of Human Rights; Laura Shubilla of the Philadelphia Youth Network; Marguerite Sallee of America's Promise and Laurence Steinberg, a psychology professor at Temple University.
The panelists addressed the benefits of increasing interagency coordination in general and of FYCA in particular from the perspective of the government, nonprofit, business and academic sectors. All four emphasized that the well-being of the nation depends on the well-being of its youth.
"We are not having the impact we could have," Sallee said. "Our children are too important and our money too scarce to not pass this legislation."
For more information on the Federal Youth Coordination Act, visit the FYCA Coordination Center [2].