A survey assessing key needs to help young people develop healthily has prompted a series of columns that will be running for six months in The Mission Record, starting in January.
A volunteer working group called 40 Assets: Helping Our Children and Youth Thrive, will be penning the columns, and focusing on one topic a month for the purpose of public education, citizen engagement and awareness. A survey distributed to high school students in November 2008 helped guide the column topics, which will be literacy, bullying, community values, positive youth activities, service to others and moving forward after high school.
The 40 developmental assets focus on 40 key areas integral for the healthy development of youth.
Samantha Reeve, working group chair, said the assets are like a ladder.
"A ladder is a lot like life with consistent and predictable support or rungs needed to get to the top to be in a good place. If some of those rungs are broken or not there, it makes the climb much more difficult," she said.
For more information visit www.search-institute.org, or for details on the group, call Kirsten Hargreaves, social development manager for the District of Mission at 604-820-3752, or khargreaves@mission.ca.