Centering Youth Thriving

Exploring how a deep understanding of what it takes for young people and adults to thrive can galvanize our commitment to creating healthy and equitable systems and ecosystems that optimize learning and development.

Knowledge to Power Catalysts invites you to join us as we continue to explore the implications of the evidence curated in “Too Essential to Fail: Why Our Big Bet on Public Education Needs a Bold National Response”, our February 2024 report commissioned by Education Reimagined.

Too Essential to Fail brings together a preponderance of evidence from disparate sources that combined give us the confidence we need to create “a new education architecture that leverages the full complement of community resources needed to empower and support learners for life, work, and civic engagement.” This confidence, we argue, does not come solely or even primarily from the reform efforts inside the education system. It comes, instead, from the increased understanding among educators, employers, parents, youth and community development practitioners of the importance of understanding both the individual and collective nature of youth thriving.

Youth thriving is more than well-being. Thriving young people are healthy, productive, and connected, have a forward-driven sense of purpose and agency, and are grounded in a strong sense of self and community.

Thriving communities need thriving youth. Youth are the innovators who make sense of the changing world and shape our future. They are a force for good. But too few young people experience the conditions needed to thrive, putting our economy and our democracy at risk.

Thriving youth need thriving ecosystems. As young people seek out new experiences that help them shape their identities and find a sense of purpose, they need steady access to adults throughout their ecosystem who help them find their sparks and see multiple pathways for exploration, growth, and contribution.

Thriving ecosystems need thriving systems. Thriving systems are effective and supportive and help the people in their employ look outward and connect to the broader ecosystem. They give them time, training, tools, and permission to understand and connect to youths’ lives beyond their walls.

Over the summer and into the fall, we invite you to join live remixes of some of the amazing presentations and discussions from our April 1-2 Convening Centering Youth Thriving: Moving from Systems to Ecosystems. These webinars provide opportunity for participants and others to take a deeper look at the meeting themes. Click to learn more about the participants, planners, and early products.

Upcoming Events

September 17, 2024

12PM EST / 9AM PST

Thriving Evidence: How Expanding Credit for Learning Outside of Classrooms Helps Young People Thrive

Join Andrew Frishman, Co-Executive Director of Big Picture Learning, Peter McWalters, former Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education of the State of Rhode Island, and Alexis Steines Rao, Vice President of Innovation and Outreach at the Afterschool Alliance for a lively and candid discussion of the current landscape of state and local policies that allow students to get credit for anywhere, anytime learning. Together they’ll explore how and why these policies have come into being, and how they have supported or unintentionally thwarted the development of robust learning ecosystems that illuminate multiple pathways towards accruing credits that matter for young adult success.

This is the fifth in a series of webinars Knowledge to Power Catalysts will be hosting between now and September focused on centering youth thriving.

Previous Events

September 3, 2024

Thriving Communities: How Harnessing the Assets of Community Members Fuels an Abundance of Learning Experiences

#4 – A Centering Youth Thriving Webinar Series

Join Josh Schachter, CommunityShare’s Founder and Executive Director, and Patrick DiSimeo, the Chief Strategy Officer at Cruces Creatives to get inspired about why and how schools and OST spaces can create more relevant and vibrant learning experiences by fully leveraging the skills, knowledge, and life experiences of community members. Over the past decade, CommunityShare has developed three scalable strategies that have helped communities like Tucson, AZ and Las Cruces, NM steward the growth of equitable learning ecosystems that help youth, adults, and communities thrive.

Webinar Recorded Video

PowerPoint Presentation

August 20, 2024

Thriving School Systems: How the XQ Competencies Anchor Youth Thriving and Propel School Transformation 

#3 – A Centering Youth Thriving Webinar Series

The XQ Institute is dedicated to rethinking the high school experience so every student graduates ready to succeed in college, career, and real life. Based on cutting edge research in adolescent neuroscience, developmental psychology, and the science of learning—and endorsed by experts, educators, and students—the XQ Competency framework provides a new way to define student success by fully integrating cognitive, social, emotional, and academic learning. Join XQ Senior Advisor Michele Cahill in a conversation about XQ’s suite of tools for bringing the XQ Competencies to students and their communities, including a mini design sprint to create powerful learner experiences in your youth program, school, or classroom.

Webinar Recorded Video

PowerPoint Presentation

August 6, 2024

Starting with Goals: Helping Systems Understand Their Role in Supporting Ecosystem Health and Equity

#2 – A Centering Youth Thriving Webinar Series

“Too Essential to Fail” brings together a preponderance of evidence from disparate sources that combined give us the confidence we need to create “a new education architecture that leverages the full complement of community resources needed to empower and support learners for life, work, and civic engagement.” This confidence, we argue, does not come solely or even primarily from the reform efforts inside the education system. It comes, instead, from the increased understanding among educators, employers, parents, youth and community development practitioners of both individual and collective nature of youth thriving.

Youth thriving is more than well-being.
Thriving communities need thriving youth.
Thriving youth need thriving ecosystems.
Thriving ecosystems need thriving systems.

On August 6, Karen Pittman and Merita Irby, reviewed the evidence presented in Too Essential to Fail to show its relevance for these four assertions that ground Centering Youth Thriving Initiative. They also brought in new findings to further make the case for starting with this bold but attainable goal.

Webinar Recorded Video

PowerPoint Presentation

July 2, 2024

Learning Ecosystems: An Introduction with Examples

#1 – A Centering Youth Thriving Webinar Series

In the recently released report, “Too Essential to Fail: Why Our Big Bet on Public Education Needs a Bold National Response” (commissioned by Education Reimagined), Karen Pittman and Merita Irby outline how we can create “a new education architecture that leverages the full complement of community resources needed to empower and support learners for life, work, and civic engagement.” They make the case that, taken together, parents, learners, community organizations, employers, academic researchers, and educators – both teachers and administrators – know enough about what isn’t working, what is working, and what is needed to make education meaningful and impactful for everyone. It is time to stop tinkering around the edges and time to move from thinking about systems to focusing on improving the health of learning ecosystems.  But what, exactly, is a learning ecosystem?

On July 2 we explored core principles of learning ecosystems and what it takes to ensure they are healthy, equitable, and thriving. We were joined by Dr. Tom Akiva, University of Pittsburgh, and Tyler Samstag, Remake Learning to take away the mystery of what learning ecosystems are and learn about the decades of innovative ecosystems stewardship in and around Pittsburgh, PA. 