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The Transformative Potential of Community-Based, Learner-Centered Ecosystems

February 17, 2021

Disruption creates opportunity. COVID, and continued racial reckonings have exposed many of the inefficiencies and inequities that are baked into our public education system and, more broadly, into public conceptions of how learning happens. Every school leader is committed to “building back better.” Many, having seen the innovation and resourcefulness of families and community organizations who stepped in to fill the complex void suddenly created by school closings, are seeing the value of building forward together – thinking about how to better leverage the assets of these critical learning partners. Only a few, however, are thinking about how to use the disruption to fundamentally transform their schools to have youth empowerment, equity, and community baked into their core.

What Next? Why Now? An Interview with Karen Pittman

February 5, 2021

The time has come. The transition is upon us. Not the one in downtown D.C. The one right here at the Forum for Youth Investment. For the last several years, Karen has signaled that the day was coming when she would step out of organizational leadership and “find more time.” More time to reflect. More time to write. More time to amplify powerful ideas. On February 1st she will step down as President and CEO of the Forum and move into a Senior Fellow role. She will continue as a co-lead of the Readiness Projects – “using science-informed strategies to upend inequity and accelerate progress” – alongside coordinating partners Merita Irby (Forum Co-founder and Executive Vice President), Hal Smith (National Urban League) and Deborah Moroney (American Institutes of Research). She will also free up time and brain space to explore new ways of maximizing our our shared mission of “changing the odds for children and youth.

Merita Irby interviews Karen – her colleague for more than a quarter of a century – about where she’s been, what’s up next, and why now.

Personal Reflections from Karen Pittman on the First Week of 2021

January 11, 2021

When my phone's emergency alert alarm went off at 3 pm Wednesday, I knew it wasn't a weather emergency. The Mayor was shutting down the city. I assumed that the violence many of us dreaded had started. It wasn't until I finished my virtual meetings and turned on the news, however, that I saw the scope and seriousness of the events. It did not take long to process them: White nationalists had successfully breached the U.S. Capitol. I am still working to fully understand the motivations of the leaders - from elected officials to law enforcement - who fueled that rage and then let this happen. This was not a natural disaster. This was a man-made disgrace.

What I am really struggling with is how to respond to them. What can I do? What should I do?

Measure, Use, Improve! Data Use in Out-of-School Time

January 6, 2021

Opportunities to support young people’s learning and development are normally shared and spread across various spaces, places, and delivery modes in schools, community organizations, and families. We have robust ways to measure and evaluate learning in school systems, but how do we measure the impact of out-of-school (OST) settings?

A Note from the Forum for Youth Investment’s Board of Directors

January 5, 2021

Happy New Year! After a long and difficult 2020, the Forum for Youth Investment is committed to working with our partners, clients, and funders to build back together in new ways to meet the moment. Though the challenges we face may be great, we also see incredible opportunities and potential to change the odds that all young people are ready for college, work, and life.

Why Isn’t Juneteenth Taught in Schools?

December 22, 2020

According to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission and Juneteenth.com, it is a celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, Union Soldiers led by Major General Gordon Granger landed at Galveston, Texas, to announce that the war had ended and that all enslaved people were now free. The day became known as the African American Emancipation Day, and is recognized today as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day, and celebrated every June 19.

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All young people reach their fullest potential - in education, work, and life.

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