Investing in Relationships

Let's Do This

We know relationships are important and make a big difference in the lives of young people, but, according to research from Search Institute, we're not investing in these relationships nearly as much as we should. When surveyed, most people in the US believe that youth are solely the responsibility of parents and family and that relationships with youth are unidirectional with youth playing a purely passive role. This perception is a lot different from the actual evidence that shows that caring, multi-dimensional relationships can help youth people thrive and support resiliency, learning, and social-emotional development. 

We must invest in relationships and mentoring to help youth people thrive and succeed. 

To do this, we can help adults see the role they play in youth's successes, understand that relationships are multi-dimensional and multi-directional, and intentionally embrace infrastructures that support relationships. 

We can't do any of these alone, but we can work collectively to ensure that we are providing youth with meaningful and authentic connections to caring adults.

Stay Inspired

For more information about what we need to do to invest in relationships for the benefit of young people, take a look at this article from Search Institute.