Connecting Expertise In and Around Communities

The New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community provides a host of technical assistance services within three categories: 1) consultation, 2) program development, and 3) organizational development. Most of the services are provided at low cost or no cost. Where possible, the Forum attempts to leverage existing grants, projects, or other resources to provide services to communities for free. Some of the technical assistance supports (executive consultation, organizational development) require ongoing and/or comprehensive engagements, and thus may be executed through formal agreement.

Consultation

General Consultation: Forum executive, leadership development, organizational development and training staff help foundations, organizations and community groups design and manage implementation of new projects, on old projects that need new perspective. We work on projects of all sizes by developing workgroups for partners that stress our “building group capacity, not being group capacity.

Our relationship with organizations all over the state of New Mexico has helped to make our services place-based and relevant, whether in Albuquerque or in the rural parts of the state. We are all about action-based research and participatory methodologies, which means that we don’t sit in our offices writing plans and reports; we work closely with local communities to uncover their assets, explore best practices and develop new processes and strategies that will lead to youth and community impact.

For more information on our General Consulting Services, please contact Eduardo X. Martinez, MS at 505.821.3574 or at emartinez@nmforumforyouth.org.

Executive Consultation Services: Understanding the unique dynamics inherent in leadership heading a state department, chartering and running a school or a not-for-profit organization are important to the continuity of positive development. Leaders in these spaces find the need to express concerns and bounce ideas around in a confidential environment, without losing the confidence of their Boards or creating panic amongst the rank and file. The Forum can provide Executives of youth serving organizations confidential spaces and leadership development supports that are necessary to keep innovative organizations moving forward and meeting each development opportunity with confidence.

For more information on Executive Consultation Services, please contact Everette W. Hill, MA at 505.821.3574 or at everette@nmforumforyouth.org.

Program Development

In the absence of programs established specifically to support asset-based approaches, trained practitioners would not have the opportunity to effectively conduct PYD activities. The Forum understands the need to design, build, and support programs in the field that are responsive to tenets and values of positive youth development. Consequently, the Forum has established a variety of supports in the area of program development. These supports allow for engagement of advocacy networks around service learning, out-of-school time programs, and youth violence prevention providers.

Program development is supported under a foundational lens of quality service, and specific consultation and/or program design can be tailored for any youth initiative. Training and technical assistance under the “Essential Elements of Quality in Out-of-School Time” is a prime example of supporting the field through program development efforts.

For more information on the Forum’s program development efforts, please contact Everette W. Hill, M.A. (Everette@nmforumforyouth.org)

Organizational Development

The New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community recognizes the need to provide organizational development support as a means to establish, support, and expand asset-based and positive youth development in New Mexico. The New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community strongly believes that organizational development supports, along with supports for youth (via youth engagement), practitioners (via training), and leadership/professional development are vital to building on existing community assets that value young people as key contributors to create healthy communities in New Mexico.

The cornerstones of the Forum's organizational development services include:

• Organizational Assessments
• Participatory Strategic Planning
• Quality Systems Management
• Community Engagement via the Voice of the Community System™

Additionally, the organizational development team is provides training in the following areas:

• Community Asset Mapping
• Facilitation Skills Training
• Facilitation Skills Training for Youth and Practitioners

The Forum provides organizational development supports and services through partnership with our constituents. Most of these supports and services are coordinated and provided via contractual obligation with recipients. For more information, contact Eduardo Martinez, Director of Infrastructure and Organizational Development (emartinez@nmforumforyouth.org).