By Katherine Landergan
correspondent
—
NEWBURYPORT— This summer, a dozen teenagers are working to create an online directory for youth who live in the Greater Newburyport area.
The project, formally known as YouthMapping, is being sponsored by Newburyport Youth Services with the intent of giving young people access to resources that are not found in traditional directories, like entertainment, counseling and health services.
Andrea Egmont, director of Newburyport Youth Services, said she wants the project to be run entirely by teenagers and expects participants to make checklists, conduct interviews, and set deadlines by themselves. At the end of this seven-week program, the teens will receive a stipend for their work.
When the map launches this fall, the end result will be an online map of everything from drinking fountains to libraries to health centers. The map will be linked to Newburyport websites like those run by the Chamber of Commerce, Newburyport Public Library and Newburyport Public Schools.
The purpose of YouthMapping is not only to raise awareness about what resources are available but also what resources are not available by identifying gaps in services for young people that can be used by community planners.
According to the Community YouthMapping website, the national program was first instituted in 1995 by the Center for Youth Development and Policy Research. Since then, Community YouthMapping has been implemented in more than 100 sites across the United States, with the purpose of providing "accurate information to local communities on places to go, opportunities and things to do for young people, children and families."
Community YouthMapping has also been implemented in countries such as Haiti, Egypt and parts of Sub-Saharan Africa to identify resources in the areas of healthy living, disabilities and health literacy.
Alex Canning, a senior at Newburyport High School, said she joined the YouthMapping project because she wants the Greater Newburyport area to be more accessible for teenagers.
"It's going to be hard. There's a lot of work we need to do," Canning said. "But it's going to be worth it in the end."
Canning has been an active member of Youth Services since she transferred to Newburyport High School last year from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Dover, N.H. She has worked with Egmont to create a private line for students to report bullying, as well as organized a number of summer trips for teens, including days to Boston, a trip to York Zoo, and skydiving.
"(Youth Services) is trying to change the community for the better, and that's what I want to do. I want to make a difference," Canning said. "I know I'm new to the school, but being apart of this makes me feel that even though I am new, I can make a difference."
Canning said that although Newburyport has a lot of resources, she wishes there were a health facility for teens. After the YouthMapping website is up and running, she plans to meet with Newburyport councilors to discuss the possibility of creating a center.
"I want a place where we can get our answers without feeling as though we are being questioned or pressured," Canning said.
Liam Wilbur, a history major at Amherst College, has been working for Youth Services as a tennis counselor for the past four years. At the beginning of the summer, he asked Egmont if there were any programs he could get involved in, and she suggested he head the YouthMapping project.
"(Egmont) really has a good vision for the community, and I was certain anything she'd be working on would be worthwhile," Wilbur said. "As soon as she told me, it seemed like the kind of thing our community could use."
Wilbur said he loves the idea of using Google maps to customize a map for the youth of the Greater Newburyport area. He is also most excited to create a list of places that hire kids at age 15.
"It should be one of the most intensive projects we will be looking at, and one of the most rewarding, hopefully," Wilbur said. "I wish I had something like this when I was growing up."
