Laserfiche WebLink
• <br /> program goals, content, leadership, mana17.gement, and facilities to determine the <br /> match between desired program characteristics and actual program operation. <br /> Create Healthy Communities <br /> The value of recreational programming for children and adolescents is <br /> supported by the findings of the Search Institute, a non-profit research and <br /> education group. Blyth and Roehlkepartain (1993) analyzed the nation's <br /> healthiest communities (defined as those communities where only a small <br /> minority of youth engage in high-risk behaviors) and concluded that the level of <br /> youth involvement in community organizations had the greatest impact on <br /> community health. The authors found that communities where a majority of <br /> youth were involved in structured recreational activities were considerably • <br /> healthier than communities where few young persons were involved in <br /> organized activities, or where few recreational activities were available. <br /> Peter Benson (1993), a researcher at the Search Institute, concluded <br /> that the development of healthy adolescents requires the support, involvement, <br /> and cooperation of family, school, and community organizations. Benson <br /> (1993) identified certain attributes --which he termed "assets"-- that protect <br /> youth from at-risk behaviors and are strongly correlated with healthy <br /> communities. Based on Benson's model, parks and recreation programs can <br /> provide the following assets needed to develop healthy youth: support, control, <br /> structured time use, educational commitment, positive values, and social <br />