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4 <br /> A. Youth Coordinator <br /> We recommend hiring a youth coordinator to assist those who work with <br /> youth to match youth in need of assistance with the appropriate agency <br /> or agencies and to advocate for the best use of personnel and financial <br /> resources for youth services. <br /> A number of different programs and services are available to meet the increasing needs of <br /> Orange County youth. Because of the proliferation of services and their ever-changing nature, <br /> It is difficult for young people, their parents and the professionals who work with youth to <br /> know where to turn for help when help is needed. Our community's problem is not so much a <br /> lack of programs or services for young people as it is a lack of knowledge about what is out <br /> there. <br /> Oftentimes, the people who need a service are unaware of its existence or do not know hour to <br /> access it. Parents, children and service providers may be ignorant of the complex array of <br /> available services in Orange County. Service providers are sometimes unaware of what's <br /> available outside their immediate service area. This ignorance leads not only to children being <br /> under served but also leads to the mistaken perception that programs don't exist when, in fact, <br /> they do. Funding and supporting excellent services to young people is a futile exercise if the <br /> young people who need the services don't know that they exist. It is the recommendation of <br /> the Youth Committee that, to address these problems, our communit),create the position of <br /> youth coordinator to collect and disseminate information about youth services. <br /> A full-time youth coordinator would act as a resource for information and as an advocate for <br /> young people and their families. Whenever children, their parents or the people working with <br /> them are uncertain of where to turn with a problem, a call to the youth coordinator would send <br /> them in the right direction. When the youth coordinator recognizes that a particular person <br /> might have difficulty accessing the needed service, the coordinator would help guide that <br /> person through the process. The youth coordinator would also recognize any gaps in the <br /> existing system and advocate for needed change and help coordinate the work of various youth <br /> related committees in our community. <br /> The youth coordinator would ensure the most effective use of the existing continuum of <br /> services for our community's children as well as pinpointing gaps and bringing those to the <br /> attention of officials. The youth coordinator would measure service provision outcomes and <br /> get a full understanding of how the service provision network functions and where it might <br /> need strengthening. Without a youth services coordinator, care providers will continue to <br /> waste valuable time and energy searching for programs that they don't always find. <br /> A position such as this was strongly suggested as one of the primary recommendations of the <br /> November 5, 1988 Orange County'Symposium on Services for Youth (See Attachment II) <br /> Five vears later, that position does not exist though the problems of our community's youth are <br /> clearly escalating and the need for such a position is even greater than when it was first <br /> recommended. <br /> In setting up the youth coordinator's job, the Youth Committee would request a voice in <br /> overseeing= the gob description. evaluating candidates for the job. and giving direction on initia? <br /> projects. The enclosed position description details the responsibilities and itaquirements of the <br /> \+outh coordinator as emisioned by the Youth Conimittec (See Attaclunent IJJ). <br />