Our Publications
Recommendations to School Leaders
Sep 30, 2020 In the summer of 2020, Youth Forward staff interviewed 20 local high school students to get their thoughts on how Sacramento County schools should respond to youth needs during the pandemic. Youth expressed numerous concerns and generated ideas on how schools could support youth mental health and overall well-being given school closures and social distancing. We then brought the youth leaders together and developed a series of recommendations for our local school leaders. We are currently meeting with local school administrators and school board members to follow up. California Cannabis Tax Revenues: A Windfall for Law Enforcement or an Opportunity for Healing Communities? In this report, Youth Forward and Getting it Right from the Start offer an analysis of what is happening with cannabis tax revenues at the local level in California. The report includes a detailed analysis of which local governments have instituted local cannabis taxes and how those governments are spending the new revenue. The report challenges local policymakers to end the practice of using cannabis revenues to expand law enforcement and to instead invest those revenues in youth and health initiatives in communities of color most impacted by the War on Drugs and mass incarceration. youthforward_cannabistaxreport_rev072020.pdf A Tale of Two Cities: The Campaign for a Sacramento Children's Fund In this paper, Jim Keddy analyzes the recent effort by Sac Kids First to create a children's fund in the city budget of Sacramento. On March 3rd, 2020, 54% of Sacramento voters rejected Measure G, a policy which would have created a stable funding source for youth services in the city of Sacramento. A Tale of Two Cities looks at the various dynamics in the vote turnout and in the campaign which reveal a stark contrast in priorities between voters in the more affluent neighborhoods and voters in lower-income, neighborhoods of color. A second chance: Sacramento should use Measure U money to clear criminal records Sep 19, 2019, By Nia MooreWeathers During the Measure U campaign to increase the sales tax and in the debates that followed, Mayor Darrell Steinberg and other city leaders promised that they would use the proceeds to support “inclusive economic development.” California philanthropy and the new reality of legal weed
By Jim Keddy Marijuana policy has numerous aspects that touch upon racial and health equity. Jim Keddy has authored a short paper that outlines many of these issues and that provides recommendations to philanthropy on how to approach this complex policy area. Cannabis Legalization and the Opioid Epidemic: A Moment for Transformative Change?
By Jim Keddy This short paper explores the intersections between cannabis legalization and the opioid epidemic and suggests that these two dynamics represent an opportunity for the country to change its approach to drug policy and addiction through prioritizing harm reduction and prevention. |
Funding Opportunities for Community-Based Organizations via Prop 64 Check out our new overview of the Prop 64 grant programs! CalCRG Community Reinvestment Grants Program DHCS Youth SUD Prevention Program/Elevate Youth California CNRA Youth Community Access Grant Program |