Making a difference for Iowa's Youth

The Youth Policy Institute of Iowa (YPII) is a leader in promoting policies and practices that make a difference in the lives of youth. As a non-profit intermediary organization, YPII partners with a wide variety of youth-serving organizations and public agencies to develop, evaluate, and expand services and opportunities for youth in Iowa. Positive youth development and authentic youth engagement are hallmarks of our approach to creating positive change.

Whether you are a policymaker, youth agency administrator, or front-line youth worker, we believe that every youth we impact deserves our collective best effort – to craft policies, develop strategies, and implement programs that are informed by research, delivered with compassion, and motivated by an ongoing desire to help young people achieve their full potential.

May 6, 2013
Success Beyond 18 aligns with the existing work of the Jim Casey Initiative sites, offering states the opportunity to accelerate improvements to the child welfare field. [Read more]

May 21, 2013 (FREE Webinar)
Interagency Working Group - Implementing a Trauma Informed Approach for Youth Across Service Sectors

June 10, 2013 (REGISTER BY June 3)
Iowa's Project Connection - Hanging Out or Hooking Up?

We believe that the best ideas, policies and services for young people come through collaboration among multiple stakeholders - including youth themselves. YPII brings together people and ideas to develop innovative solutions and facilitates processes to leverage and expand resources for youth.

Much is known about high quality youth programming and effective youth work practice. YPII has been instrumental in bringing that knowledge and related tools to Iowa through youth program quality assessments and youth development training. We are continually working to identify and share information and resources on best practices that can be implemented in Iowa.

Monitoring the delivery and effectiveness of youth services is essential to improving programs and informing policy. YPII works with public and private agencies and systems to develop manageable data collection processes and evaluate key youth outcomes.