Our Community’s Challenge
By Holly Simpson
Hancock County Partners Coalition has made a commitment to help build Developmental Assets among youth in Hancock County. The Search Institute defines the 40 Developmental Assets as the building blocks that help young people succeed in life. For optimal youth outcomes, the more assets a young person has, the better. In an ideal world, communities would strive to ensure that all youth eventually experience between 31 and 40 of the Developmental Assets. A 2009 survey of Hancock County students in grades 7, 9 and 11 shows 12 percent of surveyed students reports 31 or more of the 40 assets; 29 percent reports 21-30 assets; 45 percent reports 11-20 assets; and 14 percent reports just 0-10 assets.
Although the state of Developmental Assets in our community is similar to the challenging asset pattern found throughout the country, our community must make an effort to be better than the rest. Our young people are worth the effort. Some of the efforts the Search Institute suggests are:
providing meaningful leadership and community involvement opportunities,
engaging young people in youth-serving programs,
providing consistent and well-defined behavioral boundaries, and
helping youth connect to the community.
It really doesn’t take much effort to make a difference in the life of a young person. A simple smile goes a long way, and simply complimenting a young person can help build self-esteem. These are simple tools, but if you want to do more than that, consider being a mentor to a child. Hancock County Middle School is currently looking for adult mentors to spend just one hour per week with a child who could really use some extra support in his/her life.
The young people in this community are our future. We need to do everything in our power to help them succeed. So, challenge yourself. Make a conscious effort to support a young person every day, even if it is just a smile.
