Many of the youth participatory action research projects that aim to empower young people to lead change in their schools or communities often fail to fully integrate them into the process, diminishing participants’ learning opportunities and the projects’ potential impact, a recent study found.

Two scholars at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with extensive experience with YPAR projects — Amy Leman, a professor in the Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications Program; and Jacinda Dariotis, the director of the Family Resiliency Center and a professor of human development and family studies and with the Carle Illinois College of Medicine — led a team that developed a comprehensive framework for these projects that better integrates young people into all facets of the work. 

Read more from the Illinois News Bureau.