HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 3448-01-2007A Resolution
NO 3448-012007
WHEREAS the Ctty of Fort Worth considers the health and well-being of its children and youth
to be a top priority and
WHEREAS the Ctty of Fort Worth recognizes that public safety economic development, fiscal
stability a strong workforce, and an educated citizenry all depend on the investments and efforts made
to help families and children succeed, and
WHEREAS, the National League of Cities has developed a Ctty Platform for Strengthening
Families and Improving Outcomes for Children and Youth, which outlines the essential tasks necessary
for sustained progress, and,
WHEREAS, the City of Fort Worth is already implementing many of the elements that are
contained in the Platform, and
WHEREAS, the Youth Advisory Board recommends that the Ctty of Fort Worth~om other cities
and towns across America in this nationwide mrtiattve to support this platform.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS
That the City of Fort Worth hereby endorses the National League of Cities Platform for Strengthening
Families and Improving Outcomes for Children and Youth as a way to organize efforts and monitor
outcomes for children and youth in Fort Worth.
Adopted this -9th ___ day of __ January---- 2007
ATTEST
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APPROVED
CITY CQUI~CIL
JAN 4 9 2007
City Secretary of the
City of Fort Worth, `texas
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Prepared by NLC's Council on Youth, Education, and Families
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A City Platform for Strengthening Families
And Improving Outcomes for Children and Youth
very day, mayors and city councilmembers throughout America
are reminded that children, youth, and families are the lifeblood of
their neighborhoods and communities
Strong cities are built on a foundation of strong families For this reason,
the actions that municipal leaders take to strengthen families and
improve outcomes for children and youth play a key role in boosting the
health and vitality of their cities and towns
A Platform for City Action
Under the leadership of San Jose Mayor Ron
Gonzales, NLC's Council on Youth, Education, and
Families (YEF Council) worked throughout 2005 to
develop a platform or agenda for municipal action
and leadership on behalf of children, youth, and
their families. The YEF Council s goal is to chal-
lenge every city and town to take concrete steps that
are likely to yield immediate and significant results,
regardless of the community's size or composition.
We all know that local circumstances and needs
vary greatly The YEF Council has developed atwo-
partplatform for city action that encourages munic-
ipalleaders tomove forward by building upon their
own unique mix of assets and opportunities.
• The platform s first part highlights an essential
'infrastructure, key functions and processes
that play a crucial role in effective or sustained
investments in children and families.
• The second part of the platform calls upon
municipal leaders to take a series of more spe-
cific action steps in each of seven issue areas.
early childhood development; youth develop-
ment; education and afterschool, health and
safety youth in transition, family economic suc-
cess, and neighborhoods and community
The Costs of Inaction
At the same time, the costs of failing to act are
enormous. They are reflected in individual lives,
municipal budgets, and prospects for city growth
and revitalization.
When families fail; children -our next generation
of citizens, workers, and leaders -all too often fail
as well. We see the toll of family failure in higher
rates of child poverty, child abuse, school failure,
and a host of related societal problems. And we
know that it takes nearly Herculean efforts to
reverse the damage to children when families can-
not support and nurture them.
Many of the highest costs of family failure land
squarely on the doorsteps of our city halls, as
spending for public safety, education, and human
services rise and the strength of the local work
force and economy is undermined.
This platform does not represent a catalog of
everything that city leaders can or should do to
strengthen families and prevent these failures.
Rather, it provides starting points for city action -
practical steps that every city and town can take to
build stronger families and improve outcomes for
its children and youth.
Some may view this platform as quite ambitious.
Without question, it asks mayors and other city leaders
to place the needs of children, youth, and families high
on their cites agenda and then to keep them there.
For a fuller statement from NLC's Council on Youth, Education, and Families
that presents the case for municipal leadership to strengthen families and
highlights the costs of inaction, see Strengthening America's Families: What
Municipal Leaders Must Do in the Publications section at wwwnlc.org/iyef.
1 Essential "Infrastructure" for
Sustained Progress
Every community must have a structure,
mechanism, or process for carrying out each of
four essential tasks that strengthen families,
improve outcomes for children and youth, and
sustain the community's efforts over time:
1) Identify needs, opportunities, and priorities for
future action through a city commission,
mayors task force, or other group that
brings together leaders from the public, pri-
vate, and non-profit sectors as well as par
ents and other community residents.
2) Promote effective city-school collaboration
through regular meetings between the
mayor and/or city council, school board,
and school superintendent that focus on
shared priorities and the development of
joint plans of action.
3) Encourage and support youth voice, engage-
ment, and leadership through a mayor s
youth council, appointment of youth to
municipal boards and committees, and/or
community-wide youth summits.
4) Measure progress over time through the use of
a community 'scorecard or set of bench-
marks that tracks key outcomes and places
them within the context of a broader report
on the status of children, youth, and families.
II Key Action Steps to Consider
Mayors, city councilmembers, and senior
city administrators have many opportunities
to act on behalf of children, youth, and fam
flies in their communities. Initial steps to
consider include
Early Childhood Development
1) Work with local United Ways and other
community groups to prepare educational
kits offering tips for new parents in the most
commonly spoken languages, and distribute
them through local hospitals and physicians.
2) Provide information for parents that
helps them find and assess the quality of
available child care and preschool
options, utilizing both print and web-
based materials developed in partnership
with community agencies.
3) Offer family literacy activities appropriate
for families from diverse cultures and back
grounds in community-based settings such
as public libraries.
Youth Development
4) Enlist youth to map local resources and
needs, and support other youth-led service
activities that tap the potential of young
people as community assets.
5) Identify and improve safe places for chil-
dren to play and youth to get together in
every neighborhood in order to promote
physical activity, healthy development, and
positive interactions with peers.
6) Expand opportunities for youth partici
pation and leadership through programs
offered by city recreation departments,
libraries, museums, and other youth
serving organizations.
Education and Afterschool
7) Encourage family involvement in schools
by sponsoring 'First Day" celebrations and
providing release time for city employees
when they attend parent-teacher confer
ences or other school events.
8) Develop a blueprint for how the city,
schools, business leaders, community
groups, and parents will work together to
support and improve student achieve-
ment, high school completion, and post
secondary access.
9) Establish a local afterschool coalition or
task force, including both city agencies
and community-based providers, that
works to identify new funding sources
and create quality standards for after
school programs.
Health and Safety
10) Partner with local health care providers,
pharmacies, and other interested
groups to highlight the availability of
federal and state-funded health insur
ance for children and their families.
11) Publicize local efforts to recruit foster
and adoptive families for children who
have lost their parents or cannot safely
live at home.
12) Work with school and law enforcement
officials, social service agencies, and
community or faith-based groups to
reduce truancy and keep children safe
and on track in school.
Youth in Transition
13) Establish or support a mentoring initiative
that connects young people to caring
adults, recruiting volunteers from
municipal agencies, local businesses,
faith communities, fraternal organizations,
and civic groups.
14) Support the development of alternative
high schools and other options for
struggling students that emphasize
rigor, relevance, and relationships while
responding to their diverse needs.
15) Build stronger linkages among key
institutions (e.g., police departments,
city human service agencies, juvenile
courts, and foster care agencies) to help
vulnerable youth, including those leav
ing .systems of public care, children of
immigrants, homeless youth, and preg
pant or parenting teens.
Family Economic Success
16) Launch or support a citywide campaign
to help ensure that low-income working
families receive the federal Earned
Income Tax Credit and other key bene-
fits for which they may be eligible.
17) Support or sponsor financial literacy
courses or personal financial counseling
to help families develop savings plans,
repair credit, avoid predatory lenders,
and plan for homeownership
18) Provide transitional jobs for disad
vantaged youth and adults who need
temporary, wage-based employment as
a stepping stone to develop work skills
and enter the regular labor market.
Neighborhoods and Community
19) Sponsor street fairs, neighborhood cele-
brations, and multi-cultural community
events to bring families together and
build stronger ties among neighbors.
20) Create joint-use agreements with school
districts and forge partnerships between
school leaders and community-based
groups to turn schools into centers of
community life.
21) Hold media events, community forums,
and site visits to local programs serving
children, youth, and families as a way of
keeping their needs in the spotlight.
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National League of Cities
1301 Pennsylvania Avenue, N W
Washington DC 20004-1763
www nlc.org/iyef
Message Line. (202) 626-3014
City of Fort Worth, Texas
Mayor and Council Communication
COUNCIL ACTION Approved on 1/9/2007 Resolution No 3448-01 2007
DATE Tuesday January 09 2007
LOG NAME 07YEF PLATFORM REFERENCE NO G 15569
SUBJECT
Adopt a Resolution Supporting the National League of Cities Council on Youth Education and
Families City Platform for Strengthening Families and Improving Outcomes for Children and Youth
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached resolution endorsing the National League of
Cities' Council on Youth Education and Families City Platform for Strengthening Families and Improving
Outcomes for Children and Youth ("Platform") as recommended by the Fort Worth Youth Advisory Board
DISCUSSION
Over the past six months, the Youth Advisory Board studied the Platform and reviewed City of Fort Worth
programs that support children and youth The Board first learned of the Platform at National League of
Cities (NLC) conferences attended by Board members The attached Platform is based on NLC's research
of what cities across the nation are doing to support youth to ensure that they become productive citizens
The Platform has two parts The first part highlights key functions and effective processes that facilitate
communication and community engagement. The second part of the Platform highlights steps that
municipal leaders can take in seven key areas early childhood development; youth development; education
and afterschool health and safety youth in transition family economic success, and neighborhoods and
community The City has already made progress in many of these areas.
The Youth Advisory Board has agreed to research develop and report out a scorecard of measures related
to children and families, as recommended in the Platform
FISCAL INFORMATION/CERTIFICATION
The Finance Director certifies that this action will have no material effect on City funds.
TO Fund/AccountlCenters
FROM Fund/Account/Centers
Submitted for City Manager's Office b~ Libby Watson (6183)
Originating Department Head. Vanessa Ruiz Boling (7534)
Additional Information Contact: Kathy Livingston (6129)
Logname 07YEF PLATFORM Page 1 of 1