There are runaway and homeless youth in every community across the country. These young people face issues impacting public health, education, and more, reinforcing the need for accessible prevention services. Often, when youth do not have access or are unaware of critical resources, crisis situations can occur.
Offered by the National Runaway Safeline, the Let’s Talk: Runaway Prevention Curriculum is a free, evidence-based, interactive tool that helps communities teach youth problem-solving skills, build resiliency, and inform them of available support systems to safely address their needs before a crisis escalates.
When youth connect with the National Runaway Safeline’s crisis service center, they access a confidential and safe space to talk about their issues. Our frontline staff and volunteers discuss options and resources to help them devise an action plan that can avert a crisis. Recognizing the many stressors young people face each day, including family issues, peer relationships, alcohol and drug issues, we aim to help ease these tensions. For youth – and adults – dealing with stress in productive ways can be challenging. Let’s Talk helps young people develop critical skills and provides resources to safely deal with stressors as they arise.
Let’s Talk is a valuable resource for anyone working with youth, including educators and service providers. By opening up conversations about healthy relationships, communication, listening, personal influences, and the realities of running away, we can start to develop a dialogue with youth about safe options and available resources.
The National Runaway Safeline encourages people who interact with youth to consider the influence they have in a young person’s life and use their ability to help youth find the strength within themselves to deal with stressors.
Download the Let’s Talk: Runaway Prevention Curriculum by visiting https://old1800runaway.wpengine.com/runaway-prevention-curriculum-sign-up/. Let’s Talk is available in both English and Spanish. To learn more about the curriculum and how to use it, view our recent webinar, Let’s Talk: Online Training for New Facilitators.
