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Building Trust and Support for Homeless Youth in OST Programs [YouthToday.org]

 

At the after-school coaching programs run by the Orange Duffel Bag Initiative, the staff never shines a spotlight on the fact that many of their participants are homeless.

Rather, they wait for a teenager or young adult to open up.

Often the moment comes when the participants draw their chairs into a circle after a day of trust-building exercises. They talk about experiencing homeless, the foster care system or deep poverty.

The OBDI organizers know their backgrounds. Counselors, school homeless liaisons and group home staffers refer them to the program in the first place.

But it’s critical their stories remain their own until they decide the time is right to share, said Diana Black, vice-president of the initiative. When the participants feel comfortable being vulnerable, that’s when Orange Duffle Bag’s coaching aimed at education and employment success can take off.

“Anytime we can put voice to our reality, it strengthens us,” she said. 



[For more of this story, written by Sarah Barr, go to http://youthtoday.org/2016/07/...uth-in-ost-programs/]

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