The YMCA builds strong kids through application of the 40 Developmental Assets defined by the Search Institute in all of the programs and activities  offered through its 23 branches.

Since 1989, Search Institute has measured Developmental Assets in more than 1 million 6th to 12th graders in communities across the United States, using the survey Search Institute Profiles of Student Life: Attitudes and Behaviors. The survey is based on the Developmental Asset framework that synthesized relevant research literature and identified the forty developmental nutrients all youth need to be healthy, caring, and responsible. The institute also developed appropriate sets of assets for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary-age children.

More recently, under the auspices of the First Decade Project - funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation - Search Institute has been able to conduct a more current and extensive review of the theory, research, and practice base for childhood development, and has synthesized the findings into appropriate sets of assets for early childhood and middle childhood. The institute continues its long-term research efforts to refine, measure, and test the asset frameworks for children of all ages.

The 40 Developmental Assets

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