The Annie E. Casey Foundationrecently released findings and recommendations from its 2nd Kids Count Policy Report of 2012.
The report focused on youth and work. Patrick McCarthy is President and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
He says the report recognizes that older teens and young adults who aren’t working or in school need pathways to work experience and skill development in order to help them succeed as adults.
He says nearly 6.5 million young people are neither in school nor in the workforce, which is why the foundation wanted to bring attention to this crisis.
McCarthy says a two-generation strategy is needed to improve the future prospects for children.
"You’ve got to simultaneously invest in young children, in their educational success, in their early development, in their development of cognitive skills, social skills, emotional skills and simultaneously, you’ve got to invest in their parents. You’ve got to help their parents be on a path toward economic opportunity, security and success.”
McCarthy says the parents of the most vulnerable young children tend to be between the ages of 16-24, many of who are disconnected from the workforce and education.
Among the report’s major recommendations are a national youth employment strategy that streamlines systems and makes support services more accessible and exploring new ways to create jobs.