The arts are a proven strategy for supporting positive youth development. Research reveals that arts participation can be a strong protective factor in the lives of young people, strengthening cognitive and social-emotional growth and reducing their risk of arrest or referral. For youth exposed to the justice system, the arts can help  break negative cycles while cultivating resiliency and building important life skills such as teamwork, effective communication, problem-solving and self-regulation. New Jersey and North Dakota are two state arts agencies harnessing the power of the arts to facilitate prevention and healing for vulnerable young people.

New Jersey

In 2019, the New Jersey state legislature enacted a bill directing the New Jersey State Council on the Arts to develop guidelines for using community-based arts education strategies to assist youth affected by public-sector systems, like the juvenile justice system. The Transformative Power of Art for Systems-Impacted Youth in New Jersey is the result of that effort to articulate and promote best practices.

The guide was developed in partnership with the New Jersey Youth Justice Commission, the Department of Child Protection and Permanency, and The Learning Agenda. The toolkit helps public agencies, community organizations, arts groups and teaching artists learn how to deliver successful youth arts programs geared toward uplifting youth voice and choice, creating culturally responsive programming and building healing-centered engagement. The guide shares evidence-based practices, program design principles and strategies for fostering community engagement and sustainability. The arts council has provided technical assistance to facilitate use of the guide and encourage the expansion of programs serving systems- and justice-impacted youth in New Jersey. 

North Dakota

The North Dakota Council on the Arts collaborates with the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Central Regional Education Association to provide arts programming at the state’s Youth Correctional Center. Since 2023, these partners have helped young people tap into creative expression as a transformational resource.

The program features a week-long residency by a team of teaching artists who offer the arts—especially poetry and storytelling—as a vehicle for reckoning with the past, healing in the present and working toward a positive future. Participants prepare original poems and stories while being encouraged to discover their own voices. At the end of the residency, students perform their works during a poetry slam event. The artists also coach students on developing plans for businesses and creative endeavors they would like to pursue after their release, to help them develop a vision and personal roadmap for the future. Youth Correctional Center staff have observed multiple positive changes among the arts program participants, including improved morale, increased social engagement and fewer behavioral incidents.

For more information on the ways state arts agencies support positive youth development, contact NASAA.