YLVC Partner Organizations

The Youth Leadership for Vital Communities Initiative (YLVC) was conducted through a partnership among three Minnesota-based organizations recognized locally and nationally for expertise in positive youth development, leadership and community development. The initiative was funded in large part by a lead grant from the Blandin Foundation.

Partners:

The Center for 4-H Youth Development is a part of the University of Minnesota Extension Service and serves as a catalyst, advocate and resource for research and delivery of quality youth development programs.

The National Youth Leadership Council (NYLC) is a non-profit organization nationally recognized for expertise and programs in service-learning and youth leadership development.

The Amherst H. Wilder Foundation is a St. Paul-based non-profit that has provided health and human services to the St. Paul area for nearly 100 years. The Foundation's Wilder Forest branch facility provides a safe and unbiased environment for community building and youth development.

The YLVC Initiative was supported in large part by a lead grant from the Blandin Foundation, a Grand Rapids, Minnesota-based foundation dedicated to strengthening rural Minnesota communities.

The partner organizations shared these principles in creating YLVC:

• We value youth as an asset and believe their voice, involvement and leadership is important to a community's vitality and in shaping a community's future.
• We value diversity as an asset and strive to include the diverse populations of participating communities in the development and implementation of our efforts.
• We promote and practice elements of quality youth development programming.
• We promote and use service learning and other experiential education methods to achieve initiative goals.