2024 Bridge Conference

Afterschool and youth development programs play a critical role in promoting and supporting the healthy development of a young person to be able to thrive in school, community and life. Demands and needs of young people typically outpace program duration, staff availability, sometimes space, and oftentimes funding. The constant drumbeat of scarcity requires investing time in key relationships and partnerships that make 1 + 1 = 3 reality. And scaling relationship building efforts into short-term, mid-term, and long-term activities that temper expectations and support realities for everyone is worth the effort. This session is perfect for those interested in discovering new ways youth development leaders and staff can consider and dream about building relationships that will have a direct impact on your programming immediately, in a year, or well down the road. This session will lean more on group discussion and problem solving, but will be framed with abbreviated presentation.