A new message from our Chair

Sheila Celata, Chair

Posted April 4, 2021 by Sheila Celata

I’ve been involved with Youth Catalytics for many years, and I continue to marvel at its resilience and relevance even in extraordinary times such as these. One of the things I most admire is that every time we turn inward to examine our own work, our value, our calling, it has resulted in something immediate and really powerful for the field.

This was true once again as we embarked on a new strategic plan in this, our 40th year, amid the global pandemic and all its ripple effects. Ultimately, the planning process led to three major inter-related directions for 2020-25: Anticipating the Future, Promoting Innovation, and Amplifying the Youth Perspective. While these are not new priorities for us, we were compelled to re-examine them in this moment and commit to experimenting further in all three areas.

Likewise, we refreshed our mission, clarified our vision, and committed to support the plan operationally. And then of course, in typical Youth Catalytics fashion, a new initiative emerged from our vigorous discussion about what lies ahead. The Foresight Initiative is in development, and you’ll be hearing more about it shortly. The premise is that in these unprecedented times, we are undergoing a paradigm shift that’s been hugely accelerated by the pandemic — so the time is now to think differently about hard problems, design creative solutions, and ultimately build a better youth services infrastructure for our young people.

And another outgrowth of our planning, welcome to our new website! I hope you’ll sign up to receive updates and stay connected with us going forward.