Mayor Todd Gloria and City Council approved funding in fiscal year 2022 to establish and bring to reality the creation of the Office of Child and Youth Success (OCYS). The office aims to serve as a connection point for residents seeking supportive services and programming for children and youth ages 24 and below. The Child and Youth Plan was developed with leadership and partnership from youth across San Diego. The OCYS management and student interns led much of the development, particularly throughout the specific lived-experience topic areas, community engagement process, and the facilitation of the community design session.

The City of San Diego’s Child and Youth Plan will be the first of its kind that provides visibility into areas of opportunity for children, youth, and families. The solutions developed will support equitable cross-generational goals to ensure San Diego is a city where children and youth can thrive for years to come. The Child and Youth Plan (CYP) is the roadmap moving forward to create innovative and sustainable solutions to ensure accountability, equity, and a shared framework with local education agencies, various public and private partners, and community stakeholders, all who share a vision for improving outcomes for children, youth, and families in American’s finest city.

The data summary provided in the plan is a glimpse into the inequities that exist within certain populations of youth and will be a guide to determine the best path forward to address system weaknesses in those data areas identified within the plan. The plan includes a summary of youth-led research, conducted by OCYS interns, on lived experience topics in each of these focus areas, including system weaknesses and opportunities.

The Child and Youth Plan also includes common themes and highlights from the town halls and focus groups related to each of the focus areas. The steering committees were organized around these focus areas, apart from child care. The Child and Youth Plan builds on youth-led research, community conversations with youth and families, and steering committees of cross-sector leaders to co-create a plan with goals and strategies across five key areas:

Specific topics will include the following:

• Education and Career Pathways
• Economic and Workforce Development
• Youth Empowerment
• Engaging Activities
• Child Care

The City will partner with the County of San Diego and the San Diego Child Care and Development Planning Council, along with other regional stakeholders, to implement the Child Care Blueprint, which lays out goals, strategies, and actions aimed at the child care workforce, facilities, and access. The City’s adopted Economic Development Strategy also lays out specific tactics and metrics aimed at strengthening the child care system for the workforce and families. Both of these plans shall be a consideration for a shared framework of goals to solve the impeding child care crisis.

It was imperative that the plan outline actionable strategies to address the system weaknesses and threats that were discussed during the community outreach process. Additionally, the goals and objectives defined through system opportunities are a reflection of the contributions from organizations imbedded in inequitable system change to ensure that future solutions consider all aspects of equity and inclusion when creating those solutions.

The creation of this plan is the first step towards aligning with other city department strategic plan goals, as well as various community partners who have the desire to make a positive change for youth development by supporting the implementation of the City’s Child and Youth Plan objective goals.

Read the DRAFT Child and Youth Plan