by Nan Henderson

CNN is providing on-going reporting about the very important issue of youth violence.  For example, on October 27, the network spent extensive airtime covering an alleged gang rape of a high school girl at Richmond (CA) homecoming dance.  Pundits, including a clinical psychologist, interviewed by CNN about the event offer no solutions, just hand-wringing and horror about “kids today.”

My advice (based on my 20 years of studying youth resiliency):  Ask students for solutions! This means, don’t forget that vast majority of kids in Richmond, CA, and in Chicago (CNN  weekly covers the youth violence there), and elsewhere are not perpetrating crimes, and in many cases—which go pitifully unreported by the media—are helping others, improving the planet, and leading positive lives.

There are kids in the Richmond high school and around the Chicago violence who will talk.  Being closest to the ground, so to speak, young people have insight and wisdom and potential solutions beyond what most adults ever give them credit for!

True, due to fear, guilt, and other crucial issues, those directly involved in the acts of violence may not come forward with “information about the crime.” That IS a sad situation.  But overall, youth want to help solve this (and other problems) and only need the invitation and support of adults who recognize how valuable they are and who will truly listen to what they have to say.

I know this firsthand.  For years, when called into schools with difficult student behavioral issues, including during my work in “Persistently Dangerous Schools” in New York City Schools, I  have demanded that the children and youth in those schools be involved in the solutions.

At one New York City School with the “PD” label, elementary students on the school student council had wonderful ideas: “It’s really just a small minority of kids causing the problems,” the students said.  “Hire more counselors for these students…Give them some ‘time out’ time…teach them anger management skills…[AND] Please let us be part of the solution.”

Students can be trained as student mediators, which is exactly what happened in the years I worked in Albuquerque, New Mexico, known for it’s over 100 “inter-generational” gangs.  Students as mediators, with conflict mediation taught school-wide diffused gang issues in Middle Schools there.  And when the kids went to high schools where the mediation program was not in place, they demanded, “Where are the mediators?”

There are solutions to these problems, and often hidden causes.  The students that surround this (small minority) of troubled youth know both.  We, as adults, need to JUST ASK THEM.

by Nan Henderson

CNN reported this week-end on the incredible success of Derrick Tabb’s “Roots of Music” Program in New Orleans.  As I listened, I clearly saw what I have called “The 4 C’s” of ANY resiliency-building program. A resiliency-building program is one that moves a child from a place of stress, risk, and negative behaviors to a place of academic and life success.

“Roots of Music” is based on “The 4 Cs”, and you can easily incorporate them into your programs.

Started in 2008 by New Orleans Drummer Tabb, just named a CNN Hero for his efforts to bring music to “vulnerable” middle-school aged kids, The Roots of Music Program offers a pro-social alternative to drugs and crime and other anti-social lures of the streets of the city.

“I am competing with the drug dealers” by “giving the life of music,” Tabb’s said.  Started in 2008, the program serves 100 youth, ages 9 – 14, giving them free instruments, four hours of instruction from 3 – 7 p.m. daily, transportation, and food.  There are now 400 kids on a waiting list.  No experience is necessary, but attendance is mandatory.  The Roots of Music band has marched in Mardi Gras and plans other high profile performances.

Almost everyone (85%) in the program has raised grades in other academic classes, and “some D and F students have become A students.”  This result validates multiple studies that show a strong correlation between music instruction and academic success.

Over and over again, four components of effective resiliency-building programs come up in the research.  The 4 C’s of the best youth programs are:

• Creativity:  Resiliency-building programs promote youth creativity.  This might just be the creativity of problem-solving, but often involves participation in some form of writing, theatre, music, or fine arts.
• Connection:  Resiliency building programs foster pro-social connection, ideally providing the kind of support one would find in a healthy extended family.
• Community:  From that connection grows a sense of community.  Kids crave community, and many wind up in gangs because they are trying to find some form—any form—of community.
• Contribution:  Providing ways for young people to contribute to the world around them is an extremely powerful resiliency-builder.

As you create classrooms, community organizations, youth programs, and support and counseling groups, assess the level of the 4 Cs.  Then, ask the youth involved for their ideas as to how to get more of each of these elements into your classroom or program.  In my experience, their answers will amaze you, and also provide terrific ideas we might never think of!

For more information on Roots of Music, go to http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/wayoflife/08/06/cnnheroes.derrick.tabb/

For more information on creating resiliency-building programs, go to

http://resiliencyblog.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=31

by Nan Henderson

I remember when the term “resiliency” was rarely mentioned in the media. At the time we started Resiliency In Action about 13 years ago, I would actually get puzzled looks when I talked about the name and nature of my business.

The past few years have, unfortunately, brought enormous adversity to our country, including 9/11, devastating hurricanes, and now this awful economic “turn down.” One small silver lining in all of this is the term resiliency is now used constantly…and that is good. Acknowledging the possibility, even the probability, of resiliency by talking about it is a step in the right direction.

But what is still missing is practical, useful information about HOW people become more resilient. Yes, the capacity is in all of us—research supports this—but there are specific ways to bring out the inherent capacity.

Specifically, we need to start talking about protective factors. When we build protective factors in our own lives, and build the protective factors in the lives of others, resiliency increases! I look forward to the day when a common question about schools, agencies, treatment and other programs, even the day-to-day lives of families and individuals is: How are protective factors being built? Protective factors both mitigate the impact of adversity and propel people to greater life success.

Protective factors are both individual characteristics that researchers have found propel people (of all ages) to overcoming adversity and they are environmental characteristics that should be the foundation of schools, organizations, families, and even whole communities. Whenever I see media reports of successful schools, organizations, and family and individual overcoming, I can always identify the protective factors at work right from the resiliency research.

To see the list of individual protective factors, and ways they can be identified and promoted, and my Resiliency Wheel model of environmental protective factors CLICK HERE.

ANNOUNCING

the updated for 2009 book,

Mentoring For Resiliency: Setting Up Programs to Move Youth “From

Stressed to Success”!

It is now available for only $9.95 as an e-book

THIS BOOK IS EDITED BY NAN HENDERSON, BONNIE BENARD, AND NANCY

SHARP-LIGHT, FOUNDERS OF RESILIENCY IN ACTION

(and it includes a Foreword by Dr. Emmy Werner, considered “the mother” of resiliency research)

ORDER THIS BOOK IMMEDIATELY BY CLICKING HERE

Resiliency In Action is about to release a long awaited CD with key content from Nan Henderson’s book, “Resiliency In Action – Practical Ideas for Overcoming Risis and Building Strengths in Youth, Families, and Communities.” The two CD set will be available in March 2009. Order Resiliency In Action Audio Seminar – How to Build Bounce-Back Kids, Adults, Families, & Organizations – CLICK HERE.

The Pennsylvania Secretary of Education, Dr. Gerald Zaharchak is now recommending that all schools use Nan Henderson’s Resiliency Model as a school organizing model. He made this announcement last spring. He said, “THIS is the model that works for kids–it supports the whole child and is the foundation for academic success.”