Kendra M Lewis

• PhD, CFLE
• Youth & Family Resiliency State Specialist at University of New Hampshire

This study evaluated effects of Positive Action, a school-based social-emotional and character development intervention, on indicators of positive youth development (PYD) among a sample of low-income, ethnic minority youth attending 14 urban schools. The study used a matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled design at the school level. A multiple...

There is a definite need for effective intervention programmes that address the social–emotional, character and healthy development of preschool children. Strong social-emotional skills are necessary for successful transitions to formal schooling and for healthy developmental trajectories. The Positive Action (PA) programme has a long history of ef...

We examined the effects of Positive Action (PA), a school-based social-emotional learning and health promotion program, on the emotional health of predominately low-income and ethnic minority urban youth. The study was a matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled trial involving 14 Chicago public schools. Outcomes were assessed over a 6-year perio...

Background: Youth problem behaviors remain a public health issue. Youth in low-income, urban areas are particularly at risk for engaging in aggressive, violent, and disruptive behaviors. Purpose: To evaluate the effects of a school-based social-emotional learning and health promotion program on problem behaviors and related attitudes among low-i...

Mitigating and preventing substance use among adolescents requires approaches that address the multitude of factors that influence this behavior. Such approaches must be tested, not only for evidence of empirical effectiveness, but also to determine the mechanisms by which they are successful. The aims of the present study were twofold: 1) To deter...

Mental health challenges for youth continue to be a growing concern. Youth- serving organizations have the potential to play a significant role in recognizing the signs and symptoms of mental health challenges in youth. The Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) training course is widely used to equip adults working with youth with skills to support...

Background: Researchers regularly must decide what information is necessary to understand school climate and how to include climate in a study. For example, which factors and/or scales should be used, is using just 1 scale for school climate sufficient, and to what extent does the selection of a single scale influence the research findings? Aims:...

Enrollment in US youth development programs is decreasing annually. Research has shown that youth in the 4-H youth development program experience a broad range of positive youth development outcomes, including greater community contributions, healthier choices, higher academic competence, critical life and leadership skills such as problem-solving,...

Background: The Theory of Triadic Influence (TTI) provides a comprehensive framework for understanding adolescent substance use. Objectives: We examined mechanisms by which a TTI-guided social-emotional and character development program, Positive Action (PA), influences adolescent substance use. Study data come from the PA-Chicago, longitudinal mat...

The current studies help to clarify the nature of growth mindsets by evaluating how strongly people hold a global belief that generalizes across multiple ability domains (e.g., math, writing). Study 1 (N = 651) showed that a bifactor model, consisting of a common global belief and beliefs specific to each domain, fit the data reasonably well. Globa...

Participatory evaluation is a form of citizen science that brings program stakeholders into partnership with researchers to increase the understanding and value that evaluation provides. For the last four years, 4-H volunteers and staff have joined academics to assess the impact of the California 4-H camping program on youth and teen leaders in are...

Program quality is an important topic for improving out-of-school time youth development programs. High levels of program quality may contribute to enhanced positive youth development outcomes. This paper explores aspects of program quality in the California 4-H Youth Development Program and its relationship to positive youth development outcomes....

The University of California (UC) 4-H Mindfulness Retreat was developed on the basis of current research of positive youth outcomes associated with mindfulness. Curricula, resources, and programming were developed to introduce participants to mindfulness to improve overall health. The UC 4-H Mindfulness Retreat provides training and opportunities t...

Until recently, California 4-H programs did not represent the ethnic diversity found in California's population of young people. To close the gap in representation — particularly with Latino youth — UC ANR began the 4-H Latino Initiative, an effort to pilot adapted programs that would target the engagement of Latino youth and families. In this pape...

Prior research has yet to elucidate how constellations of protective factors in childhood and prevention efforts simultaneously may influence youth involvement in problem behaviors across different points in development. The current study examines how latent classes of social and emotional learning (SEL) skills, parent-child relationships, and peer...

A data party is an engaging way to involve stakeholders in program evaluation. We explain the use of a data party for engaging 4-H program stakeholders (e.g., staff and volunteers) in data interpretation and helping them understand, embrace, and use program evaluation information to make data-driven decisions about their programs. We present two to...

Youths and parents in the California 4-H program have reported issues with communication and challenges in understanding the program. As a result, we developed a family handbook and other supporting documents to help youths and parents navigate the California 4-H program. This article addresses the development, dissemination, and reach of the handb...

Research on retention in the 4-H youth development program has consistently shown that one of the primary indicators for youths' dropping out of 4-H is being a first-year member. Extension 4-H professionals from California, Idaho, Wyoming, and New Jersey formed a team to study this issue. Our team surveyed first-year members and their parents/guard...

Evaluation has become a standard for youth programming, to provide both evidence for improvement recommendations and an assessment of program outcomes. Having a common evaluation tool across programs (in this case, camps) is beneficial in aggregating measurements and understanding similarities and differences between programs. The purpose of this p...

Children from low-income families are at greater risk for poor social–emotional development and physical health and may be in need of intervention. This study examined the extent to which the Positive Action (PA) preschool lessons improved low-income children’s social–emotional competence and health behaviors. Mixed findings emerged with regard to...

High-quality 4-H programming requires effective professional development of educators. Through a mixedmethods study, we explored professional development offered through state 4-H programs. Survey results revealed that both in-person and online delivery modes were used commonly for 4-H staff and adult volunteers; for teen volunteers, in-person deli...

This study evaluated effects of Positive Action (PA), a school-based social-emotional and character development program, on self-esteem levels and processes among minority, low-income, urban youth. A matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted in 14 Chicago Public Schools with outcomes assessed longitudinally for a cohort of you...

Background: We report results from the first randomized trial of the Positive Action (PA) intensive family program. Eighteen families (parents and teens) were randomly assigned to receive the program, consisting of 7 weekly meetings, with parents and teens attending separate sessions for the first half of each session (90 minutes) and then attendin...

Measuring program outcomes is required for documenting effectiveness of interventions with youths participating in programs funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) initiative. The California CYFAR program provided programming for youths aged 5-8, which necessitated the development of an age-...

https://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/resource_library/2017_ACA_Book_of_Abstracts.pdf

Behavioral trajectories during middle childhood are predictive of consequential outcomes later in life (e.g., substance abuse, violence). Social and emotional learning (SEL) programs are designed to promote trajectories that reflect both growth in positive behaviors and inhibited development of negative behaviors. The current study used growth mixt...

Youth development research suggests that adult volunteers have the potential to influence the how and when youth engage with technology as a legitimate form of program participation. The adults' comfort levels with technology, coupled with the historical structure of the youth development organization itself, shapes which technologies are made avai...

We describe challenges in the 6-year longitudinal cluster randomized controlled trial (CRCT) of Positive Action (PA), a social–emotional and character development (SECD) program, conducted in 14 low-income, urban Chicago Public Schools. Challenges pertained to logistics of study planning (school recruitment, retention of schools during the trial, c...

There is considerable research that suggests that school-based social-emotional programs can foster improved mental health and reduce problem behaviors for participating youth; in contrast, much less is known about the impact of these programs on physical health, even though some of these programs also include at least limited direct attention to p...

This report contains results from the pilot-testing of the Social-Emotional Common Measure developed for 4-H youth. It reviews the data collection and analysis, results, and supplementary information related to this measure.

Evaluation is a key component to learning about the effectiveness of a program. This article provides descriptive statistics of the newly developed National 4-H Common Measures (science, healthy living, citizenship, and youth development) based on data from 721 California 4-H youth. The measures were evaluated for their reliability and validity of...

Science education research has demonstrated the influence of affect on learning. The National 4-H Science Logic Model outlines outcomes from youth participation in 4-H science programs, which includes attitude and interest outcomes. The associated measure, the National 4-H Science Common Measure, assesses these attitude constructs and not other aff...

Background: The study examined whether adolescents receiving a universal, school based, drug prevention program in Grade 7 varied, by student profile, in substance use behaviors post program implementation. Profiles were a function of recall of program receipt and substance use at baseline. Methods: A secondary analysis was conducted on data fro...

There is a definite need for effective intervention programs that address the social-emotional, character and healthy development of preschool children. Strong social-emotional skills are necessary for successful transitions to formal schooling and for healthy developmental trajectories. The Positive Action program has a long history of effectivene...

School-based social-emotional and character development (SECD) programs can influence not only SECD but also academic-related outcomes. This study evaluated the impact of one SECD program, Positive Action (PA), on educational outcomes among low-income, urban youth. The longitudinal study used a matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled design. St...

Introduction: The Positive Action (PA) program is a comprehensive, school-based, social-emotional and character development program with demonstrated effects on behavioral and mental health outcomes. In the Hawaii randomized controlled trial (RCT) of PA, the program’s impact on substance use, violence, and sexual activity were mediated by positive...

Background: Although some reports have shown disparities in healthcare (HC) for persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) compared to persons with no disabilities (ND), this has not been examined in a national representative sample. The purpose of this study is to examine HC coverage among non-institutionalized US adults (18+ years) with and with...

Social-Emotional Learning and Character Development (SECD) [1] and related approaches [2] have been proposed to improve both student behavior and academic achievement, and a major meta-analysis suggest their effectiveness in multiple domains of behavior and performance [3]. Positive Action is a comprehensive SECD program that involves teacher/staff...

Graduation date: 2010 This study posited that maturational growth in emotion regulation should be associated with reduction in hyperactivity during the transition into adolescence. The longitudinal design assessed emotion regulation and hyperactivity in an urban community sample of children in three waves, at ages 10.6, 11.6, and 12.6 years. A para...