About Us
Youth Services Network (YSN) is a statewide collaborative of organizations committed to ending youth homelessness. YSN works together to ensure that young people throughout Minnesota receive services and supports that are equitable, sustainable, and transformational. We use our collective power to elevate youth voice, dismantle the root causes of youth homelessness including racism and systemic oppression, and drive change.
Nine evidence-based, guiding principles to help youth overcome homelessness
In 2012, six nonprofit organizations supporting youth experiencing homelessness in the Twin Cities of Minnesota began collaborating around shared values and principles. With support from the Otto Bremer Trust, this shared work resulted in a research study which outlined the effectiveness of nine principles which undergird the shared work of agencies supporting youth. You can read the full study here. This partnership has grown to a collaborative of 17 agencies seeking to end youth homelessness in the state of MN. All YSN partner agencies utilize the 9 Principles as core elements of their programming.
Interact with youth to help them understand the interconnectedness of past, present, and future as they decide where they want to go and how to get there.
Recognize that most homeless youth have experienced trauma; build relationships, responses, and services on that knowledge.
Interact with youth without labeling or judging them on the basis of background, experiences, choices, or behaviors.
Contain the effects of risky behavior in the short-term and seek to reduce its effects in the long-term.
Build relationships by interacting with youth in an honest, dependable, authentic, caring and supportive way.
Start with and build upon the skills, strengths, and positive characteristics of each youth.
Provide opportunities for youth to build a sense of competency, usefulness, belonging, and power.
Engage youth in a manner that recognizes that mental, physical, spiritual, and social health are interconnected and interrelated.
Establish a principles-based, youth-focused system of support that integrates practices, procedures, and services within and across agencies, systems, and policies.
YSN Strategic Plan
Advocate for systems change and support for youth experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.
- Create a shared policy agenda centered in youth voice that creates equitable and sustainable resources and drives systems change.
- Expand policy focus to include root causes of homelessness and sexual exploitation, and address issues of equity and access.
- Have a louder voice. Create shared language and key messages; secure seats for YSN representatives (youth and agency staff) at key decision-making tables. Change the way society views and values young people.
Collaborate with and push systems (organizational, administrative and legislative) to intentionally address issues of equity that impact youth at risk of or experiencing homelessness.
- Create and share YSN’s vision of a world where every youth is valued as an asset to their community.
- Create an equity agenda and framework for YSN’s work that put disparities related to gender, identity, race, and place at the center of the conversation and work of YSN.
- Work with youth, the community, and YSN collaborative to identify systems barriers and take action to address them.
- Hold ourselves accountable to advancing equity within our own organizations, ourselves, and the collaborative as a whole. Ensure that all YSN member organizations provide staff development and training around issues of diversity, equity and inclusion.
Amplify youth voice – in YSN, its member organizations and related sectors
- Destigmatize youth homelessness. Ensure that funders and policy makers hear from youth with lived experience.
- Engage young people in decision-making around YSN advocacy, best practice, and service delivery.
- Create opportunities for youth to hold leadership roles in YSN and member organizations (e.g. youth advisory boards) and support their success.
- Honor young people’s participation by providing stipends, payment, and/or meaningful incentives.
- Hold public forums for young people to meet with each other and provide input regarding programs and services for youth experiencing homelessness.
Define, model, and drive best practice, and improve coordination between YSN organizations to ensure youth receive the services and support they need.
- Provide local and regional training and education for YSN members and other stakeholders on topics such Nine Evidence-Based Guiding Principles to Help Youth Overcome Homelessness.
- Refine, maintain and promote the YSN app to better meet the needs of youth throughout Minnesota.
- Collaborate on pilot programming, innovation and evaluation.
- Create a model for connecting young people to skill building opportunities in the broader community (e.g., internship programs, mentorship opportunities).
Ensure sufficient and stable resources are allocated to end youth homelessness.
- Create strategic partnerships and collaborations with various entities in the state to advance the work of ending youth homelessness.
- Advocate for increased funding for the continuum of supports and services for youth experiencing homelessness and sexual exploitation.
- Elevate youth work as a profession that deserves a livable wage, robust benefits and opportunities for advancement, and recognizes the benefit of including people with lived experience.
- Work with public and private funders to determine opportunities for funding collaborative programs and initiatives.
- Explore opportunities for public, private and/or member funded YSN staff and intern positions.
Create an organizational structure and culture that is more nimble, equitable, sustainable, and drives change.
- Create a governance structure that ensures YSN’s work supports equitable participation, opportunities, and power. Determine clear membership criteria, roles, and responsibilities.
- Recruit new member organizations from across the state. Ensure YSN’s structure and work are informed by and responsive to the diversity in size, budgets and geography of our member organizations.
- Create and implement onboarding process for bringing in new YSN members and leaders.
- Create an inclusive culture in YSN that intentionally engages and supports leaders of color.
YSN Leadership Team
Corey Magstadt (he/him)
Director
YSN
Beth Holger (she/her)
Chief Executive Officer
The Link
Lisa Mears (she/her)
President
The Bridge For Youth
Ebony Warren (she/her)
Executive Director
Evergreen Youth and Family Services