Overview

The purpose of this learning brief is to share a decade of field-relevant insights, research, and findings about youth development from Teen Reading Lounge (TRL), an awardwinning, interactive, reading and discussion program for youth ages 12-to-18 developed by PA Humanities. It supports the humanities as a viable means for effectively and equitably engaging youth in programs that build important educational and social-emotional skills.

In TRL, youth select readings based on their interests and then participate in discussions, hands-on learning activities, and civic engagement projects that put the humanities into action to make positive change. PA Humanities collaboratively developed the program with artists, educators, humanities scholars, and library professionals to build the capacity of Pennsylvania libraries to better serve young people.

Since its launch in 2010, the evaluation specialists at the Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU) were contracted to collect data and feedback from both the teens and adult facilitators. In addition to providing valuable insights into the program, this ongoing research helped PA Humanities better center diversity, equity, and inclusion and align its practices with the principles of Positive Youth Development. As the program evolved, PA Humanities engaged Dr. Valerie Adams-Bass and Dr. Fatima Hafiz to build even more effective adult facilitator training based on the findings of AIU. A decade later, TRL has become a demonstrably effective youth engagement program, particularly with meeting the social and emotional needs of youth of color. The successes (and challenges) presented in this learning brief demonstrate the importance of continuous and participatory learning and evaluation in program development, among the other key takeaways.