A new report from Independent Sector and Youth Service America illustrates the strong impact of youth service on the giving and volunteering habits of adults. Engaging Youth in Lifelong Service reports that adults who engaged in volunteering in their youth give more money and volunteer more time than adults who began their philanthropy later in life.

Key findings

• Forty-four percent of adults volunteer and two-thirds of these volunteers began volunteering their time when they were young.
• Adults who began volunteering as youth are twice as likely to volunteer as those who did not volunteer when they were younger.
• High school volunteering recently reached the highest levels in the past 50 years.  
• In every income and age group, those who volunteered as youth give and volunteer more than those who did not.
• Those who volunteered as youth and whose parents volunteered became the most generous adults in giving time.

Overcoming barriers to youth service

Despite the many benefits, there still remain some barriers to youth service that must be overcome if programs are to be successful. The first one is the organizational “mindset” preparation needed for adults and youth so that working together is a productive and enjoyable experience for both groups. Some issues to address in the preparation stage include:

• Advice to adults about “dos and don’ts” on how to work with youth, and for youth on how to work with adults; 
• An open discussion about stereotypes that adults and youth have of each other; 
• Exercises to practice “shared power”; 
• Appropriate training for various age groups;
• Clear definition of roles and responsibilities for both adults and youth;
• Decision-making processes that include youth in meaningful ways; and
• Attention to logistics such as the availability of transportation, suitable scheduling, and snacks for young volunteers who come after school.

Practical examples

The report includes several examples of programs and initiatives that are already successfully incorporating young people as regular volunteers, including American Red Cross, The Food Project, State Farm’s Employee Volunteer Program, Greater DC Cares, Michigan Women’s Foundation’s Young Women for Change, and the Boston Mayor’s Youth Council, to name a few.