Task Force Report on Resilience and Strength in African-American Children and Adolescents

In this report, the Task Force on Resilience and Strength in Black Children and Adolescents encourages a paradigm shift from an emphasis on risk to exploring the complex interactive process of resilience in African-American youth.

The task force offers a bold new vision of thriving optimal development in African American youth within the following domains in the contexts of peers, families, schools and communities:

• Identity development

• Emotional development

• Social development

• Cognitive development

• Physical health and development

The report offers recommendations to the field on how to transform its approach to African American children and youth in the areas of research, practice, education and policy.

Stephanie Irby Coard, PhD, chair
University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Anne Gregory, PhD
University of Virginia

Yo Jackson, PhD
University of Kansas

Robert Jagers, PhD
University of Michigan

Le’Roy Reese, PhD
Morehouse School of Medicine

Caryn Rodgers, PhD
Johns Hopkins University

Anita Jones Thomas, PhD
Loyola University Chicago

Jessica Henderson Daniel, PhD
Children’s Hospital, Boston

Faye Belgrave, PhD
Virginia Commonwealth University

Robert Sellers, PhD
University of Michigan

Margaret Beale Spencer, PhD
University of Pennsylvania

Mary Campbell, director

Keyona King-Tsikata

Efua Andoh

Richard Babumba