March 2017
Youth Policy  NEWS
Highlights innovative youth-focused policy work at the local, state and federal levels.

President Trump's 2018 Budget Blueprint budgetblueprint
In his recently released budget blueprint, President Trump outlines various programs and departments that will receive extensive cuts and highlights an increase in military and defense spending. This blueprint still has to be formally drafted by Congress, but it signals a shift away from supporting working families and low-income children as many afterschool programs, school lunch programs and teacher-training initiatives are recommended to be curbed in favor of expanded charter schools and private-school vouchers.


In response to the City Council's historic override of a mayoral veto and unanimous Council approval of a $12 million Youth Fund, 34 city stakeholders have come together to lay the foundation of the future Youth Fund. Slated to begin granting funds in FY 2019, the fund is a new entity within the city hoping to quell youth and citizen unrest following the Freddie Gray tragedy through targeted investments into the city's youth population. Currently the Task Force is developing the general infrastructure of the fund, establishing its values, grant-making criterion and method of carrying out the to-be-developed mission of the fund over the course of six biweekly meetings, all open to the public.


In response to the Trump Administration's recent executive orders regarding immigration, the Annie E. Casey Foundation released a statement concerning the effects the travel changes will have on the lives of children within the United States

The fiscal scan titled Show Me the Way: Making Sense of Youth Development Funding in Milwaukee was conducted, with coaching from the Forum, to examine the level of public funding for out-of-school time programs for youth ages 12-24. Commissioned by Beyond the Bell, this fiscal scan analyzes all funding sources (federal, state, local and philanthropic) for youth services that were administered by the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County and Milwaukee Public Schools from 2014 to 2016. A key discovery was the difficulty in distilling the governmental funding that was specifically allocated for youth development. The Public Policy Forum report identified that youth funding is often buried within initiatives for the general population, spread across multiple funding categories or passed through various levels of government.



On March 9th, Governor Hogan signed an executive order   establishing an inter-agency, multidisciplinary commission to study two-generational strategies to breaking the cycle of poverty through a family-centered approach to service delivery. Data shows that many children who grow up in poverty or in low-income families go on to experience economic hardship as an adult, and that those living in multigenerational poverty often face difficulties in making sound long-term personal and financial plans. The commission will develop recommendations on how the state can link programs and services that create opportunities for both parents and children, particularly in the areas of education, economic stability and family engagement.