Youth Development
Illinois Collaboration on Youth (ICOY) believes all youth should have the essential elements to build and maintain their physical, emotional, and economic well-being. Unfortunately, not all children and youth have the safe, stable environment they need to thrive, putting them at greater risk of involvement with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
In collaboration with IDHS, ICOY offers training, technical assistance and other valuable support to family-serving organizations who implement the following programs: Community Youth Services and Workforce Development Programs.
Illinois Youth Investment Program (IYIP)
To address youth unemployment, poverty, and violence in Illinois' at-risk communities, IYIP is a year-round grant opportunity sponsored by IDHS that helps youth secure and sustain employment and/or achieve higher education, ensuring a greater likelihood of success and self-sufficiency. To foster healthy, safe, well-educated, and self-sufficient transition-age youth in Illinois, IYIP sites provide youth with (1) educational enhancement opportunities, (2) full- and part-time job placements and (3) case management services. ICOY supports IYIP through various methods, from transportation coordination to funding assistance through political advocacy.
Click here to view the IYIP-3473 Technical Assistance Session (11.12.24)
Illinois Youth Investment Program - Summer Jobs (IYIP-SJ)
The Illinois Youth Investment Program (IYIP) Summer Jobs (SJ) program was established by IDHS to provide Illinois' at-risk youth ages 16-24, with summer-specific opportunities to develop workplace skills and gain employment experience while exploring potential Career Pathways. The primary objective for youth is to develop their "Essential Employability Skills" and earn at least 180 hours of entry-level work experience. This may be accomplished by placing and supporting youth in unsubsidized employment, or through an agreement with the employer to fully or partially subsidize the youth's wages for a period not to exceed 3 months (13 weeks).
Community Youth Services (CYS) Program
CYS is an IDHS grant program that implements a systematic community planning approach for preventing violence and delinquency among Illinois youth (ages 11 to 24 years). To strengthen communities and ensure youth reach their greatest potential, the approach seeks to improve the health and safety of youth by addressing underlying risk factors and conditions that increase the likelihood of youth engagement in unhealthy or risky behaviors. Community residents are arranged into committees and charged with organizing, advocacy, and direct service of developing and implementing strategies, activities, and services intended to prevent delinquency and violence. CYS sites provide youth with (1) life skills development, (2) college and career preparation, and (3) connections to existing health, employment, and human services. ICOY supports CYS through technical trainings, grant assistance, and more.
Training for Service Providers
Training is tailored to meet the needs of IDHS providers while incorporating culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate materials and best practices. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for qualifying licensed professionals who attend.
See a list of all in-person and online training ICOY offers to IYIP and CYS providers.
If you’re interested in learning about how to get involved in supporting your community’s youth through development programs such as IYIP and CYS, please reach out to ICOY’s Prevention and Intervention Manager, Chanel Dotson.
