Loudoun needs to provide additional activities, transportation and buildings for its youths to keep them out of trouble between 3 p.m. and 11 p.m.
Those were the findings of 82 adults who participated in a Community Forum on Youth last week. They identified what they believed were the key problems facing Loudoun County youths. Then, 35 participants agreed to join the Youth Advisory Task Force and go to the source to determine exactly how to protect youths from drugs, violence, gangs and fatal crashes. They will interview middle school and high school students this summer and fall. Afterward, the task force will develop recommendations and a plan to engage the community in providing solutions.
Supervisor Stephen Snow (R-Dulles) said the county already has a strong preventative effort. "We want to broaden it and strengthen it," he said. "We need to come up with innovative and creative ideas."
The Board of Supervisors asked the Loudoun County Advisory Commission on Youth this spring to assess youth problems. Snow is spearheading the project. "We have to listen," Snow said. "It really, truly has to become a youth initiative, not something from old fogies like me."
Carol Kost, who represents the Dulles District on the advisory commission and chairs the Loudoun Youth Initiative Steering Committee, said the number of young people is increasing in the county and so are the challenges. School officials estimate another 4,000 students will start school in the county this fall.
THE FORUM PARTICIPANTS identified the county's rapid growth as one of the youths' problems. Loudoun is the fastest growing county in the nation.
"There are a lot of inherent risks and opportunities related to that growth," said participant Claire Scholz, president of Loudoun Education Association. "It cannot be ignored."
The participants broke into groups to decide on the top concerns:
* Lack of facilities for youth between 3 p.m. and 11 p.m.
* Not enough activities for all youth, particularly those who are at risk, economically disadvantaged and culturally diverse.
* Working parents, which places limitations on their involvement.
* Lack of transportation for youth.
* Socioeconomic divide.
Delbert White Jr., of the Seneca Ridge Middle School PTO, said a lot of business people have fit black and Hispanic males into a "negative mold."
"In the summer, if you can't work, you'll definitely get in trouble," he said.
Stanley Stewart said it's a trust issue for some merchants. "There are cultural differences," he said. "Loudoun County used to be black and white."
He said the county has become fertile ground for gangs.
THE PARTICIPANTS ALSO focused on positive factors. The groups identified a strong faith-based community as one. They said some of the encouraging signs have negatives as well. There is a lot of opportunity, for example, but not enough transportation. A lot of parents are involved with the youth, but many others are too busy working to make the time.
Joe Wilson, representing Loudoun's Youth Services, said the absence of parents has led to some youth falling through the cracks. "That's a detriment to their development," he said. "Kids need and want adults in their lives."
Snow made a list of activities that could benefit Loudoun's youth. He said the solution might be with businesses providing flextime so parents could be there for their children. "We need to market the parents," he said. "There is a cost benefit to having a happy family."
He suggested enlisting mentors. "When I was young, an unguided missile in life, I ran in to a gentlemen who took me under his wing," he recalled. "There is always a need for somebody with a guiding hand."