Youth Advisory Committee presents first annual report to government

The Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) today presented its first annual report to Premier Roger Grimes and Youth Services and Post-Secondary Education Minister Anna Thistle.

The report entitled: A Youth�s Future is Today, reflects on the work of the committee since its inception in June 2001. It also outlines 22 recommendations, many of which have already been implemented by government. Reforming the province�s student aid program is just one example.

"There is a need for action on issues facing the youth of our province and this committee has given us a voice that the provincial government is listening to," said committee member Dan Hill of Sheshatshui.

The YAC comprises 15 members from around the province, ranging in age from 16 to 29. They are advised by four adult mentors who serve as a support mechanism. The committee provides a forum for the open discussion of key issues affecting young people in Newfoundland and Labrador, and advises the Minister of Youth Services and Post-Secondary Education on government�s youth related programs and policies.

"We have been warmly received by government and have not been afraid to speak out against any public policy that affects youth," said Ted Laurentius, a committee member from St. John�s.

During the next several months, the YAC will be addressing issues relating to youth empowerment and equality, including such things as the equity of access to quality education in the province�s rural and aboriginal communities; the transition from high school to post-secondary institutions, substance abuse; and exploring with the Royal Commission on Renewing and Strengthening our Place in Canada, the means to promote amongst youth a sense of place and pride for the province.

Ministerial Statement

Media contact: Reg Wright, Youth Advisory Committee Media Liaison, (709) 256-2763.

1. In the field of Youth Employment and Career Direction, we recommend that:

1. The Department of Youth Services and Post-Secondary Education raise the awareness of existing programs and services for youth, identify the impacts or outcomes of these initiatives, and share this information with all stakeholders, and encourage employers to take on a greater role in supporting the province�s youth.
   
   
2. In this regard, the department should establish a position of co-ordinator to act as a resource person on youth employment programs and opportunities offered by the provincial government, the federal government, municipal governments, community agencies and employers in the province. The intent should be that through co-ordination and follow-up, these initiatives will be better structured, organized, efficient, and made more meaningful for the participants. At the same time, the various organizations and agencies involved, along with the participants, should be held accountable in the effective implementation of, and participation in, these youth employment programs.
   
   
3. Youth employment initiatives should be extended past the summer season to include year-round initiatives.
   
   
4. The provincial government should report on its initiatives to integrate and/or re-integrate young offenders into the provincial workforce, including their participation in related education and training programs.
   
   
5. The provincial government should introduce and/or expand career development programs and resources though such measures as dedicated specialists in the school system, introduce career exploration programs in junior/middle high school and expand the current programs in the high school system.
   
   
6. The provincial government, in conjunction with the school boards, university and colleges, should take action to ensure on-the-job training, including apprenticeship training, co-op work arrangements and work experience programs, for high school students and all students enrolled in post-secondary education programs.
   
   
7. The provincial government and its education and employment agencies should consult with the Youth Advisory Committee on the design and implementation of these and any other new initiatives in this field.
   

2. With respect to ensuring Affordable Post-Secondary Education; we recommend that:

1. The provincial government should continue to address the levels of debt being incurred by post-secondary education students and to take action to reduce exceptional debt levels of students and former students.
   
   
2. The provincial government should lobby the federal government to improve its loan remission/reduction component of the Canada Student Loans program.
   
   
3. The provincial government should ensure that all students are provided adequate counselling about the costs of post-secondary education before they embark on their course of studies.
   
   
4. The Student Aid Division should take more pro-active steps to promote their appeals process and to ensure that it is flexible to reflect students� (and their families) changing and evolving financial and other relevant circumstances.
   
   
5. The Student Aid Division should consider applying the full cost-of-living index to family incomes when calculating the family contribution component under the student aid formula for dependent students.
   

3. With respect to the activities of the Math Group established by the Council on Higher Education and improving student mathematics performance generally, we recommend that:

1. Members of the Math Group should meet with high school teachers, in workshops or other forums, who have been successful in working with students to improve mathematics performance.
   
   
2. The Math Group should organize high school and first year post-secondary education student focus groups to explore the issues around improving mathematics performance.
   
   
3. The Department of Education should sponsor a pre-entrance mathematics exam during the last year of high school to help students prepare for entrance exams to post-secondary education institutions.
   
   
4. The Department of Education should encourage greater use of technology, especially for isolated schools in the province, to allow high school students to have access to additional educational supports for mathematics.
   
   
5. The university and colleges in the province should re-assess the need for their students taking calculus and advanced forms of mathematics courses to enroll in most courses of study at their institutions.
   

4. The Youth Advisory Committee also offers some additional recommendations:

1. The Department of Youth Services and Post-Secondary Education should develop and maintain a directory of all programs and services designed to service the youth of the province.
   
   
2. The Department of Youth Services and Post-Secondary Education should actively co-ordinate all provincial government programs and services designed to serve the youth of the province.
   
   
3. The provincial government should sponsor and organize a series of Provincial Youth Conferences across the province to address such areas as best practices in youth programs and services, issues affecting youth career development, etc.
   
   
4. All provincial government reports should be written in more user-friendly language.
   
   
5. The definition and age determination for �youth� should be reviewed so that they are the same for all governments and their agencies operating in the province.
   

2003 04 08                                        10:10 a.m.