Bridging Research and Practice

PRYDE hosts events that bridge research and practice. We bring practitioners to campus so that they can network with faculty whose research interests are relevant to their careers, and we promote awareness of translational research by hosting events that showcase innovative, youth-focused projects.

Past PRYDE Events

2023 Youth Development Research Update
May 23-24, 2023
Every year we invite researchers and practitioners to share their work with conference attendees who work directly with youth across New York State, most of whom work in the 4-H Youth Development Program within the Cornell Cooperative Extension network. The conference serves as a forum to discuss issues relevant to the well-being and development of children and adolescents. It’s also a networking event for practitioners to learn about opportunities to get involved in new research and programming opportunities.

2021 Youth Development Research Update: Community Neuroscience Initiative, Center for the Developing Adolescent, and Youth Climate Action
May 26–28, 2021
The 10th annual Youth Development Research Update featured a diverse lineup of speakers, exploring a different theme each day. The first day dove into insights on adolescence from neuroscience through the community engaged initiative, the Brain Days Program. On the second day, the Center for the Developing Adolescent shared takeaways from developmental science with a focus on equity and youth contribution. The final day of the conference centered on the development of environmental attitudes among children and adolescent empowerment through the Wild Center’s Youth Climate Action approach.

2019 Youth Development Research Update: Diversity and Inclusion in Youth Development
May 29–30, 2019
The annual Youth Development Research Update creates a forum for practitioners and researchers to discuss issues relevant to the well-being and development of children and adolescents. This year, the conference focused on issues of diversity and how this topic encompasses many aspects of youth development – including youth and educator attitudes, program delivery, and policy. The conference included a series of talks by researchers from across New York State, a panel of practitioners, brainstorm breakouts, and other activities.

Third Annual Purpose Conference: Purpose in Context: Ecological Perspectives
November 9-10, 2018

This conference focused on the construct of purpose in life across various contexts, including youth programs, education centers /schools, prisons and community re-entry programs, religious institutions, and retirement communities.  Talks from this conference (and our two prior purpose conferences) will become book chapters to be published as an edited volume on the role of purpose in life.

Discovering the Possible: How Youth Programs Provide Apprenticeships in Purpose
Reed Larson, Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
November 9, 2018

To develop purpose young people need to discover they can influence the future and both believe they can overcome obstacles and develop the skills to do so. Larson’s research finds that youth programs provide conditions for teens to learn these skills. Programs support experiential learning, provide models of action, attentive staff, and collaborative peer engagement. Youth learn skills for setting achievable goals, strategies for working around real-world obstacles and skills for managing and using the strong emotions that accompany goal pursuit. Youth experience apprenticeships in the possible.

Keynote address: Purpose in Context: Ecological Perspectives Conference

2018 Youth Development Research Update: Cross-Generational Approaches to Youth Development
May 30-31, 2018

Each year, the Youth Development Research Update creates a forum for practitioners and researchers to discuss issues relevant to the well-being and development of children and adolescents. The theme for 2018 was Cross-Generational Approaches to Youth Development. Events included a series of talks by researchers from across New York State, a panel of practitioners, brainstorm breakouts, and other activities.

Media Literacy and Citizenship Development in Youth and Emerging Young Adults
November 9-11, 2017

The Media Literacy and Citizenship Development in Youth and Emerging Young Adults Conference was held in Ann Arbor, Michigan on November 9-11, 2017. PRYDE’s second theme conference discussed what the current research tells us about how young people use social media and how educators could teach youth to use social media in productive, positive ways. Multidisciplinary researchers and media developers from across the nation debated topics on youth, communications, misinformation, and media use.

Purpose in a Diverse Society Conference
October 27-28, 2017

The Purpose in a Diverse Society Conference was held in St. Louis, Missouri on October 27-28, 2017. This conference addressed topics such as the role of purpose in promoting comfort with diversity, how diversity experiences may help individuals find a direction for life, and how different forms of diversity are associated with life goal commitment. Events included talks by speakers from across the country, a poster session, and other activities on the Washington University campus. This conference was co-hosted and sponsored by PRYDE.

2017 Youth Development Research Update: Productive Social Media Use and Youth Development
May 31 - June 1, 2017

The Seventh Annual Youth Development Research Update took place in Ithaca, NY at La Tourelle Hotel. The theme was in Productive Social Media Use and Youth Development. Events included a series of talks by researchers and practitioners  from across New York State, small table discussions, and brainstorm breakout sessions.

Purpose and Health across the Life Span
October 11-13, 2016

The Purpose and Health across the Life Span conference was held in Half Moon Bay, California on October 11-13, 2016. This conference addressed topics such as the role of purpose in everyday life, its associations with health and well-being, and how we can foster purpose in youth. You can view a video from this event here.

PRYDE Inaugural Event: The Future of Youth Development Research: Perspectives from Research and Practice
May 5, 2016

The PRYDE Inaugural event was held on May 5th, 2016 in the Statler Hotel at Cornell University. The event was held to celebrate the creation of PRYDE and its mission to link science and service in innovative ways by involving 4-H communities in basic and applied research designed to understand and improve youth experiences in New York State and beyond. Events included talks, audience Q&A, and a panel discussion featuring nationally-prominent youth development researchers and practitioners.