Youth

It is never too early to support healthy marriages. With all of the talk about the importance of strengthening marriages, we cannot lose sight of the fact that a lot of what is needed happens long before a marriage occurs. Children begin learning from their earliest relationships about how to be in a relationship.

Helping support marriages must include efforts to work with youth as they develop their relationship skills. It is clear that happy, successful, strong marriages are not the result of luck or of being a “good person” but that relationship SKILLS play the most important role. Skills in communicating, resolving conflict, and making decisions are not learned when people marry, but are developed throughout life.

RESOURCES

• Programs offered by the Family Life Council

  The Guilford County Marriage Resource Center, a part of the Family Life Council, offers programs for youth to assist them in developing strong, healthy relationship skills. Programs can be a one-time presentation or a series. Programs are offered at a wide variety of sites including public and private schools, churches, group homes, housing communities and community centers. The types of programs we offer are:

  • Building Healthy Relationships – The goal of the program is to help middle to high school youth develop their personal and relationships skills which they can use in all of their relationships throughout life. Topics in the program include: communication, conflict resolution, finances, dating, and marriages today.
  • 40 Developmental Assets – The goal of this program is to develop assets with middle to high school students that will enable them to become healthy, strong, and productive members of society. This program is supported by research from the Search Institute. Building developmental assets can play an important role in promoting and protecting positive youth development. Topics in the program include: support, empowerment, boundaries, constructive use of time, commitment to learning, positive values, social competencies, and positive identity.
  • Wise Guys – Wise Guys® is a male-oriented teen pregnancy prevention program. Its interactive, fun, and informative approach has proven effective year after year in helping adolescents make wiser and more responsible decisions.

  To set up a program for middle or high school youth, please contact the program director at info@gcmarriage.org or call 333-6809.

• Visit our Resource Library for videos and publications available for check out.

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