State priorities for designing durable cross-sector systems supporting highly mobile youth¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 2 claims (1 for, 1 mixed) · 1 study (1 qualitative), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

From the two state cases, the report distills priorities for state leaders: "Align state-level policy while allowing local flexibility. Formalize cross-agency collaboration. Strengthen data and terminology foundations. Build trust in systems. Elevate youth voice in decision-making. Strengthen protections for youth classified as migrant and for youth involved with the justice system." These strategies are presented as a set that can help states design durable systems responding to the full spectrum of mobility-related challenges facing highly mobile youth.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• State-level actors control major funding streams and set laws and regulations guiding local agencies

Constraints¶

• Sustainable cross-sector collaboration requires both institutionalized structures and individual leadership, per the report's findings

Target Learners¶

• Highly mobile youth across homelessness, foster care, migrant, and juvenile justice populations

Target Learning Goals¶

• Educational stability and continuity
• Equitable access to supports across HMY populations

Affordances¶

• Cross Sector Collaboration Framework Hmy

Claims¶

• Inconsistent terminology across agencies and restrictive data-sharing rules are central barriers to identifying and serving highly mobile youth in both states [+W]
• In both Colorado and Washington, youth in foster care and youth experiencing homelessness are consistently prioritized in policy and practice, while migrant and justice-involved youth remain less reliably supported [~W]

Related Strategies¶

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Harrington, H., Willis, J., Bishop, J. P., & Cazares-Minero, M. (2026). Highly mobile youth: How state policy and local implementation can work together to support youth. WestEd; Center for the Transformation of Schools, UCLA. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED681372