Collaboration Celebration Youth Summit
In January 2008, youth members from Youth ‘N Action East organized a city-wide high school “Collaboration Celebration” summit. The purpose of the event was to provide at-risk youth with an opportunity to connect with youth and resources from other schools as well as teach them important collaboration and networking skills.
Eighty-seven youth from nine different schools and nine different programs/groups participated in the Summit. Youth from each organization (which included several drug and tobacco-free groups, a gay/straight alliance, a mental health support group, and a drug and alcohol youth support program) took turns sharing about their program/group and the benefits and resources each provided.
Youth were provided with packets which included information on each group, contact information, and a pad of paper and a pen to write down contacts they met at the event. In one activity, groups were partnered together in a competition to come up with an event or program they could collaborate on. Youth were also placed in small groups with youth from other schools and given the opportunity to share their experiences. They were tasked with identifying traits they had in common as well as their differences and finding ways they could support one another.
Evaluation surveys were distributed after the event to youth participants as well as adult chaperones. The evaluations returned were overwhelmingly positive and over a dozen youth, as well as all the adult volunteers from various schools, requested that the event be held again.
This event was covered by a local television station. We hope to host this event annually as it was extremely well received.