Impact
Abt Associates/ Brandeis University
"YOUTH CORPS: Promising Strategies for Young People and Their Communities"
A 1997 Abt Associates/ Brandeis University random assignment study concluded that Youth Service and Conservation Corps are an invaluable resource for young people. According to the study, Corps generate a positive return on investment and the youth involved were positively affected by joining a Corps. The report documents that:
• Significant employment and earnings gains accrue to young people who join a Corps;
• Positive outcomes are particularly striking for African-American men;
• Arrest rates drop by one third among all Corpsmembers; and
• Out-of-wedlock pregnancy rates drop among female Corpsmembers.
Abt Associates documents several factors to which the effectiveness of Corps is attributed:
• Comprehensiveness of services;
• Supportive and dedicated program staff;
• Quality of the service projects;
• Intensity of the service experience; and
• Corpsmembers have access to an expanded social network
Learn about the National Evaluation of Youth Corps – the largest-ever random assignment study of national service programs that is currently being conducted by Abt Associates.
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