Maine Youth Action Network

December 2006 News to Use--Action Planning


NEWS TO USE
from the Maine Youth Action Network
December 2006
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HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
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Check Out Our New Website!
Topic of the Month: Action Planning
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Have you ever left a meeting feeling inspired and excited about a new project only to realize that you’re not sure how to move forward? After coming up with a brilliant idea it is important to take the next step toward success by making an action plan. Having a plan for what actions need to be done & who will do each one is essential to achieving group goals. A plan keeps group momentum going and motivation high, because each person knows what’s being done and how to contribute, rather than feeling confused or uninvolved. Thinking about what people or organizations can help you achieve your goal can also help get you and your group more connected to great resources in your community—and these community relationships often lead to new ways to achieve your goals, or to exciting projects for the future! A written action plan can ensure that the workload is shared by all members of a group, and that group members have ownership of, and are accountable for, their pieces of the work. This month’s newsletter is full of tips to help you turn your visions for change into concrete plans to make a difference!

Quote of the Month
“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”

~Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Successful Action Planning
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by Kelsey McLaren
Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School School-Based Health Center Youth Advisory Board

A group of girls from Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School went to the Maine Youth Action Network Conference in 2005 in Bar Harbor, Maine. At this conference we went to workshops to learn more about Youth and Adult Partnerships. One of the last workshops we went to was about Action Planning—making a plan for how to take the next steps toward a goal. Our group consensus was to improve our health office in a few different ways, but most importantly how to work with the adults involved to make those changes come alive.
  • What is our action? We wanted to cover the health office windows to make the waiting room more private.

  • Who are we doing this action for? All around school, we’d heard students talk about not feeling comfortable in the health office because other students could look in and see them. We were doing it for the students.

  • Why is this important?Our group, the School-Based Health Center Youth Advisory Board, felt that students should feel comfortable going into the health office so they could get the services and information they needed and wanted.

  • When can we follow through with our plan? We felt that something as small as this could be done immediately upon returning to our school.

  • The where was simple, too: we knew that we had to improve privacy in our school health office

We set out to improve the atmosphere in the health office, and through action planning we accomplished our goal. Not only did the health office windows get covered, but our school nurse made a student-friendly pamphlet announcing all the services offered. We got more teenage style posters hung up in the health office waiting room, and were even asked for input about improvements. Our group has grown to eight girls and seven boys, and our most recent project has been to create a student survey to gather feedback on our health office and school.

Our group has benefited greatly from creating action plans. Creating plans has taught us how to find new resources and how to resolve problems with adults. Having a plan helped us set our priorities straight and we learned that we can set goals and stick to them. Most importantly, we’ve learned that we are able to accomplish our goals.

Skill Builder
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Here are some helpful links
to get you started on your
Action Plan!


Network Highlight: Thank You to YOUTHINK!
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YOUTHINK is a Portland-based youth philanthropy and advocacy board that mobilizes youth, in partnership with adut allies, to make positive social change in their city. YOUTHINK started in 2003 with funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and has given almost $20,000 in grants to amazing youth-led projects, including activist documentaries, new youth-driven classes and policy changes that give youth more voice and power in greater Portland. YOUTHINK facilitated action planning sessions this year at the MYAN Peer Leadership Conference. During these sessions they shared some "tried and true" tools for understanding the issues and creating change, like the root causes tree activity and how to "plan backwards." If you would like to learn more about their action planning tools, youth philanthropy or just learn more about YOUTHINK they can be reached through Ainsley Wallace at 874-8236 or at mailto:wallaa@portlandschools.org.
Grant Support
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January 15th is the deadline for numerous Maine Community Foundation Grants, including:

Community Building Grant Program, which seeks project proposals that recognize and build on a community’s strengths and assets. Foundation Grants, including:

County Fund Grant Program for which committees of local citizens advise the grantmaking of the nine county funds and make recommendations based on their knowledge of community needs and issues.

York County Children's Aid Society Fund which awards grants to improve and increase direct services to neglected, exposed, wayward and indigent children in York County

MYAN Announcements
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*MYAN gives great thanks to all of the individuals and organizations that helped to make the 23rd Annual Peer Leadership Conference a success! Please visit the conference page on our website for a full list of funders, sponsors & donors, as well press about this year’s event!

* Did you see an article or hear a news story about this year’s Peer Leadership Conference? Please let MYAN know! If you didn’t, share your experience at the conference with your local paper, TV station or radio station by writing a letter to the editor or sending a press release! Sharing your story is a great way to build connections in your community & to help raise community support & funding for the Peer Leadership Conference! See the print resources on our Activism page for tips on approaching the media.


*Help us raise some dough! Join us at Flatbread Company at 72 Commercial St., Portland on January 2nd from 5pm- 9pm when $3.50 from every pizza sold will benefit PROP’s Maine Youth Action Network, and our Peer Leadership Conference. For directions, visit http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=r6dlz9bab.0.0.fbktlybab.0&ts=S0216&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flatbreadcompany.com%2F.

*This year's Youth Planning Team, in honor of World AIDS Day on December 1st, held a raffle to raise money for Camp Chrysallis, a summer camp program for youth living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. We are proud to announce that the Conference raised $478.05 from particpants to support the camp!

Calendar of Events
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Want to get the word out about events in your community? Please email Molly O’Connell at mlo@propeople.org to let us know about what’s going on near you! Events will be published on the MYAN website & in the MYAN News to Use.

  • Flatbread Company Fundraiser for MYAN!
    January 2nd, 5pm-9pm at 72 Commercials St., Portland.
  • Youth Suicide Prevention Gatekeeper Training,
    January 23rd, Medical Care Development, Augusta,
  • Youth Suicide Prevention Training of Trainers,
    January 25th, DoubleTree Hotel, Portland,
  • Sexual Attitude Reassessment,
    January 29-31, Stowe, VT

    • January’s trainings from the Maine Association for Nonprofits include:
    • Tools & Techniques for a Successful Website,
      January 9th, UMA Campus Center, Augusta
    • Planning Just the Right Special Event,
      January 11th, Vision Care Center, Bangor
    • Legally Raising Your Voice in Maine,
      January 12th, Northern Maine Development Commission, Caribou
    • Successful Grant Proposals: Research Strategies,
      January 23rd, Burton M. Cross Building, Augusta
    • Basics of Budgeting,
      January 30th at Casey Family Services, Portland
  • See a full list of trainings offered by the Maine Association of Nonprofits by clicking here
    • Call For Stories About Youth/Adult Partnerships
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    We're interested in what you are doing in your community. Tell us your success stories, challenges and accomplishments and we will highlight them in our newsletter!

    Inspire others throughout the state and share your story of how you are making positive change in Maine. To submit YOUR story, contact Derek!

    Next month's topic will be Youth and Adult Partnerships.
    If your story is published in News to Use, you will receive a $10 stipend!

    Deadline for submissions: Monday, January 19th!

    Join the Network
    Didn't get to join the network at the conference? Here's another chance! The Maine Youth Action Network is expanding its network of individuals and groups around Maine who are making a difference! This will result in MYAN having an improved capacity to support you and to connect YOU to the ideas and experiences of other groups doing similar work and to new resources & tools.

    Whether you’re a long-time MYAN member or program that wants to get involved, we need you to fill out our survey.

    Fill out the survey TODAY and pass it on to others who will benefit!

    And The Award Goes To...
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    Each year at the Peer Leadership Conference, MYAN recognizes youth who have been nominated by their local groups because of their exceptional efforts to make a positive difference in their communities. We are proud to announce this year’s Youth Leadership Award winners, and we honor their dedication, enthusiasm, creativity & vision.

    • Caroline Bixby, Lincoln Academy, L.A. Players, for her tireless efforts and strong leadership abilities within her group and the MYAN YPT, and for continually giving back to her school and community!
    • Amelia Butman, Greenville High School MOOSE group, for being so committed to the cause of teaching young adults the effects of smoking, and for giving others the tools needed to become leaders in their schools and communities
    • Ryan Gavin, Biddeford High School, Youth Organizing for Better Opportunities, for his passion, dedication, initiative, risk-taking, and most importantly, for taking time to do everything he can in the best way he can!
    • Grace Ledoux, Scarborough High School Student Council, for her dedication and ability to hit the ground running for the Scarborough High School Spirit Week that raised over $3500!
    • Brenton Levesque, St. John Valley YAP, for always being willing to help with any projects and being very committed and highly motivated to get his message out!
    • Nate Philbrook, Hichborn Middle School SPRINT for Life, for providing three years of dedication and leadership to his community’s YAP group!
    • Mikala Thompson, Katahdin Area Partnership Y2Y, for her hours of community service and for being the driving force behind her high school’s program with her endless energy, ideas, and enthusiasm!
    • Brittany Tinkham, Katahdin Area Partnership, Medway Middle School, for being a role model and a great advocate in her school and community!
    • Arielle Tselikis, Old Orchard Beach High School Natural Helpers, for training other youth to work as peer listeners and for being such a strong advocate in her school and community!
    • TJ Williams, RVHCC SWAT, for his invaluable willingness to help on any project, and for always doing it with enthusiasm and a smile!

    Disclaimer: Please note providing information from other organizations does not constitute endorsement of their publications, nor is the Maine Youth Action Network, Department of Health and Human Services, the Muskie Institute or the People’s Regional Opportunity Program responsible for the content or materials highlighted from other organizations in our e-newsletter or information posted on any of these organizations' web sites.

     

     

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    Maine Youth Action Network

    phone: 207.874.0060
    web: http://www.myan.org