Vision

The 2003 White House Task Force Report on Disadvantaged Youth notes that despite the billions of federal, state, local and private dollars spent on needy youth and their families, many out-of-school, at-risk youth are currently being left behind in our economy because of a lack of program focus and emphasis on outcomes. Well-designed and coordinated programs offer youth who have become disconnected from mainstream institutions and systems additional opportunities to successfully transition to adult roles and responsibilities.

Mission

In response to the White House Report the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, Justice and Labor have committed to a collaborative approach at the national, state, and local levels to serving our nation's neediest youth in order to develop innovative approaches, enhance the quality of services delivered, improve efficiencies, and improve the outcomes for the youth we serve.

Objectives

Specifically, an Interagency Work Group was created to ensure that the communication, coordination, and collaboration recommended by the White House Task Force occurs and to focus on the following objectives outlined in the Report:

• Developing and coordinating policy, within existing policy structures to address the needs of disadvantaged youth.
• Maximizing interagency collaborations to utilize the significant expertise within specific Federal agency.
• Coordinating Federal research so the government can fund programs that produce results that help disadvantage youth.
• Finding and elevating models of "what-works" and help replicate them nationwide.
• Developing innovative model strategies that efficiently and effectively respond to the needs of disadvantaged youth.

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