Greater Richmond Youth Development Network
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Answering a Community Need
The Greater Richmond Youth Development Network (RichmondYDN) brings together people who are working in out-of-school time, youth development, health and education fields for networking, relationship building and shared learning. The Greater Richmond Youth Development Networks seeks to promote high-quality youth programs and engagements by starting with ensuring that youth development professionals receive appropriate and culturally responsible professional development training. The Mary and Frances Youth Center is the Richmond region’s hub for youth development professionals training, resources and community conversations.
Training Calendar
The Greater Richmond Youth Development Network Training Calendar offers a holistic approach to enhancing the professional capabilities of youth-serving organizations, offices, and programs. It addresses the increasing demand for top-notch, varied, and inclusive workshops and growth avenues in youth development. By uniting specialists, practitioners, and leading methods in positive youth development from various sectors within the region, this calendar cultivates a sense of community through collaborative learning experiences.
Open to all youth development professionals, our training calendar is designed to teach how to connect with youth, build management skills, develop social and emotional learning skills and practice good mental health for ourselves.
Our trainings are designed for:
- Supervisors, directors and coordinators of programs working with children and youth.
- Teachers, educators, school administrators, health specialists, youth program/service managers and contracted youth mentors looking to better understand quality youth programming.
- Anyone who wants to grow and develop their ability to work effectively with children and youth.
- Registration is, in most cases, open to the public with a focus on Richmond regional youth program staff, educators, youth program leadership and VCU students.
- Registration for training may require a fee. Follow directions for each training session for registration payment.
- Each registration is intended for use by one participant only. Register additional participants individually and pay any additional fees.
Directions and Parking
The Mary and Frances Youth Center is located on the academic campus of Virginia Commonwealth University and in downtown Richmond, VA. Our street address is 120 South Linden St. Richmond, Virginia 23284. Be sure to allow adequate time to find street parking or to walk from a designated parking garage. Most street parking requires payment, please plan accordingly. GRTC bus stops are located close by for public transportation.
Preparing
Plan to arrive 20 minutes early to allow sufficient time to find parking, meet the trainer and fellow participants, and clear your mind to prepare for learning.
Plan for the training to run its full, allotted time. Leaving class early means you will not have the opportunity to gain all of the learning outcomes intended for the course.
RichmondYDN reserves the right to cancel the training and, if possible, reschedule or provide a credit or refund. Cancellations due to weather are rare and The RichmondYDN will follow VCU guidelines with respect to weather-related training cancellations. You will find VCU’s current status on their homepage, www.vcu.edu. If the University is closed, the training will be canceled and efforts may be made to reschedule.
Cancellation may occur if a training on the calendar does not have at least five participants by the time registration closes (forty-eight hours before the training.
Cancellation notification and requests must be submitted by email. We ask registrants to email about changes at least forty-eight hours in advance.
- Refunds:Cancellation notification must be received one week or more prior to the training date in order to receive a refund.
- Credits: Credit can be issued when a registrant cannot attend a training for which they registered. Credit may be issued to participants to use for a future training (scheduled or yet unidentified).
RichmondYDN Regional Map
Community Conversations
These are informal opportunities for youth development professionals to get together with one another over the lunch hour. Feel free to bring your own lunch, as well as items to discuss with others or just come and enjoy the company. We also welcome suggestions for specific topics that would be appropriate for Community Conversations.
Online Training For Youth Development Professionals
VCU maintains a listing of trainings that can be completed online through the Mary and Frances Youth Center, Virginia Commonwealth University or Regional Partners. See that list here.
Questions/Suggests a Training Topic
The Greater Richmond Youth Development Network Training Calendar invites training proposals from those in the youth development field or who have expertise that would impact it. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact Dr. Vaughn Garland at Garlandvw@vcu.edu
Contact us
Greater Richmond Youth Development Network (RichmondYDN), headquartered at the Mary and Frances Youth Center and under the auspices of the Virginia Commonwealth University Division of Community Engagement, is spearheaded by Dr. Vaughn Whitney Garland. RichmondYDN serves as the hub for regional networking and training initiatives. Starting in Summer 2024, RichmondYDN oversees the VCU Advanced Certificate in Youth Development Management. Contact garlandvw@vcu.edu for more information.