Youth/Young Adult Leadership and Education

What innovations and collaborations could contribute to strengthening current pastoral outreach to Hispanic young people and providing mentoring and support?

1. Listen to, encounter, and engage Hispanic youth/young people (7 comments). Groups expressed this in various ways including: maximize on what they have, let them develop criteria for themselves, utilize volunteering and social outreach because it brings them to the table, encountering programs, engage their strengths, encounter, and accompaniment.

2. Mentoring (4 comments). Boisi’s MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership was mentioned, as well as an idea to compile a book regarding mentoring and coaching.

3. Other themes that received more than one comment but not mentioned as frequently include: educate and involve social media.

What targeted investment could result in the expansion of access to higher education for Hispanic youth?

1. Take interest and value youth and their culture (7 comments). As one group put it, “no token representation.” Other recommendations: remove pastoral obstacles, ensure access to positions in church ministries, ask youth what they think solution is, create space for youth, reach youth in communities, and get engaged with them outside the classroom.

2. Counselors/mentors (6 comments). Have people who support and encourage them, especially at college, include a parental focus, invest in someone to accompany during college years, and make these mentoring relationships holistic and ongoing.

3. Education (5 comments). Various suggestions directly related to education systems and share some cross-over with other recommendations: scholarship opportunities awareness, have colleges reach out to families, create graduate support programs, increase access to Catholic schools, and focus on retention and graduation.

Action steps

1. Rethink how we engage, listen to, and encounter youth (8 comments).

Youth need networks of social capital. Utilize social media, outreach and meet them “on the streets.” Listen to their journeys.

2. Catholic education (7 comments). Catholic education gives young people options and prepares them better for college. Ideas include: help parents understand Catholic education is a good choice, mentor students to help them stay in Catholic college, work with parents, pilot a project focused on enrollment and retention, make education affordable and accessible.