WHAT IS YOUTH WORK? (TRACING HISTORY)
Know:
When reading Reclaiming Community: Race and the Uncertain Future of Youth Work, chapter one reaffirmed that community work and playing politics go hand in hand. The part about how these crucial programs in society still cannot escape politics and capitalism is something I know too well. The line “They run the risk of mission drift as they try to appease donors” is so powerful and true. These programs need to exist in order to impact today's youth and to help them; however, you need money to keep these programs alive. From previous work experience, I know that donors tell schools and organizations exactly how they want their money spent. So, if a donor is willing to give an organization a lot of money, but they want to change things that may affect the students, how does the organization say no when they need funding?
Back in 2020, I was working for a CBO called College Advising Corps. We were a small team of about seven workers. Our goal was to be in urban high schools around RI and to help all students go to college or have post-grad plans. It was a wonderful CBO and a MUCH NEEDED one in the state. However, due to low government funds, being the smallest branch in CAC, and having no donors willing to support the CBO, it was dismantled in 2022. Still, to this day, my former high school (Shea), where I was working, does not have a college advisor to help their students.
Learn:
I deeply enjoyed Decolonizing Youth Development: Re-imagining Youth-work for Indigenous Youth Futures. Despite being a youth worker, I was unaware of the history behind youth work and how deeply it is intertwined with colonialism. The article emphasized how colonial practices have shaped the way we approach youth work today. These methods, designed to erase Indigenous cultures and impose Western values, have left lasting impacts that are still embedded in parts of our society and youth programs. In order for us to fully move toward a better system for youth workers, we must reflect on the roots of colonialism and recognize how these structures still operate. Decolonizing youth work means challenging these colonial methods and embracing Indigenous values like community-centered support and overall healing from colonialism. If society does not recognize the past, we will be stuck with these methods that erase the foundation for what youth work should be.
More:
In Reclaiming Community: Race and the Uncertain Future of Youth Work, they touch so quickly on the value of youth workers but also on the high turnover rate we see in the field. I want to dive deeper into the conversation about why people leave youth work, non-profits, and community-based workspaces so quickly and why nothing is done to keep this from happening. The article touches on the low wages and the lack of space for advancement. But I constantly question: if we know these are issues, what can we do to fix them? I know it is definitely easier said than done, but why do people burn out from helping fields so quickly, even though we go into these fields with such passion for the work? I also think about how employers could help with turnover. Are CEOs of these organizations making millions while their employees cannot afford rent? What is upper management doing to protect and support the youth workers? How can we, as a society, help change the turnover in these fields? So many times in the article it said how these programs are CRUCIAL, but how can we pay people like their role is crucial?
Alright now Maya... SAY IT AGAIN FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK! Your "Know" and "Learn" sections gave a beautiful summary and reflection of the material, but the "More" part has me in a chokehold, because Let's. Talk. About. It. I think youth worker burnout is such a huge issue that has yet to be properly addressed. I'm going to speak from my personal experience (because anything else would be disingenuous): I recently transferred to my current position from RI DCYF. I love that job more than any other one I've done, but being a youth worker is a 24/7 position that doesn't pay enough and often erases the line between work/life balance. Being a Child Protective Investigator was (and is) never a job that you just walk away from after your shift-partially because 75% of the time your shift isn't ending on time (think heading home at 1am when your shift ends at 7:30pm) and partially because it requires *such* a massive amount of emotional labor. As youth workers, we are thinking about the kids we are serving from the time we meet them, and it never stops. We worry if we did the right thing, if they are doing better now, how is their trauma going to be treated and managed, do they view us as a helpful presence in their life? The list goes on, and the list grows with every new case we are assigned (you get assigned 4 of the 5 days on average due to staff shortage). People who enter that job only for the money don't even make it past the probationary period. If you are going to work there, it's because you have an unshakeable drive to help make families stronger and children safer, both on the days when the report was overblown and you can catch up on emails, and on the days when the reporter left out A TON of info and all hell has broken loose. It is such a shame that tomorrow's innovators and leaders are nurtured and raised on the backs of youth workers, but we are not provided the tools needed to serve our communities adequately. Guess that's why some kids see us as super-strong, almost magical beings: because even without receiving the bare minimum, youth workers make it happen every day for every kid we come in contact with. Thank you again for raising this excellent point. I'm going to see myself out now because I could discuss this forever, but I know I've basically written a post on your post and not a comment... Bye.
ReplyDeleteMaya, I really enjoyed reading your post. I also worked for CAC and the organization and advisors did amazing work. The schools we served definitely needed the extra support and resources. It's unfortunate that they couldn't receive the funds/donations needed.
ReplyDeleteI loved reading this post, Maya and I really appreciate both your insights and questions. This topic of burnout and turnover is so important and I think it's also tied in part to the point you make in the first paragraph about the disproportionate control that donors have over nonprofits, how they are funded and how they get to spend their money. We will def explore this more!
ReplyDelete