Communities for Children and Youth

For twelve years (1997-2009) the Communities for Children/Communities for Children and Youth initiative of the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet has pursued the following mission:

To measurably improve the well-being of children in every Maine community;
and
To increase educational attainment and achievement levels of all Maine children.

The map represents the 72 communities that have participated in the initiative in one way or another through the years.

Communities for Children and Youth Americorps*VISTA Project: The Corporation for National and Community Service has funded one of the largest Americorps*VISTA projects in the nation, making over 200 full-time Americorps*VISTA members available to Maine communities over the last 10 years

We are also currently working with 15 of our Partner Communities on grant projects supporting:

Diversion to Assets: Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention pilot program in five largely urban communities to identify and develop asset building resources for first time juvenile offenders.
College-Community Mentoring Project: expanding mentoring programs in six college communities, pairing trained college students with children and youth in need of extra support in their surrounding communities.
Assets-Getting To Outcomes for Maine (A-GTO 4 ME): a control-group research study with 12 communities to explore the impact of the Getting to Outcomes planning process, paired with the Developmental Asset Approach, on prevention capacity and improved alcohol and drug outcomes among youth.
A Coordinated School Health Program Approach to Building Assets in Schools and Communities: Portland and Boothbay are developing strategies to increase the number of positive influences in students’ lives in order to increase their chances of academic and social success, including increased youth empowerment and positive school climate.

For information about the people in each of the contact communities on the map, go to the Partners Statewide section of our web site.

For more information on the initiative, call Susan Savell at (207) 287-4377 or Contact Susan Savell