Centering a Holistic Approach for Systems-Involved Young People

Summary

About LEAP

In 2016, the Annie E. Casey Foundation launched LEAP™ (Learn and Earn to Achieve Potential), a national initiative that helps youth and young adults who have been involved in the foster care or justice systems or who have experienced homelessness succeed in school and work. Through partnerships with public agencies, postsecondary education, housing, service providers and more, LEAP partners are working toward improving policies and practices that place more systems-involved young people on positive economic trajectories.

Evaluation by Equal Measure

In 2023, Equal Measure, an evaluation partner for the initiative, conducted a series of surveys with LEAP partners to better understand their efforts in tackling the root causes of disconnection from education and careers with systems-involved youth. This brief shares findings from Equal Measure's evaluation.

Evaluation Findings

Taking a holistic approach is the dominant and overarching strategy of LEAP partnerships, which focus on implementing many interrelated strategies to improve educational and work outcomes for systems-involved young people.

LEAP partners describe this approach as looking at the whole young person and all that surrounds them, including societal barriers to education and career growth as well as root causes of disconnection from education and career pathways. Such a strategy is particularly critical when working with systems-involved youth or youth who have experienced homelessness since their environments strongly impact their ability to succeed in work or school. LEAP partnerships recognize the importance of meeting young people’s basic needs and providing them with stability before connecting them to education and career pathways.

According to LEAP partners, a holistic approach to comprehensive, long-term change includes:

• Deep cross-sector partnerships. In most communities, one organization cannot meet all the complex needs of systems-involved young people. Partnerships with external organizations, such as community-based organizations and government agencies, are essential for housing, food, health and more. Additionally, even large direct service organizations need to develop internal partnerships, such as those across departments, to connect youth to services.
• Listening to young people and supporting youth leadership. Allowing young people frequent and varied opportunities to share their stories and name their needs, interests and desires helps partners know what young people need and strengthens partners’ holistic support. Meeting youth needs also means building up their confidence and self-efficacy, leadership skills and voices.

Looking Ahead

As the LEAP initiative comes to a close in 2024, Equal Measure will share more lessons from the evaluation, including approaches to changing local ecosystems to better connect systems-involved young people to promising education and career pathways.