About The Ready by 21 Coalition

The Ready by 21 Coalition of Austin/Travis County is a collaborative group of youth service providers, educators, government agency representatives, and teen advisors who are concerned about the youth in our community, especially youth who face challenges to achieving self-sufficiency.

Youth succeeding in school, participating in productive activities, and avoiding criminal behavior and health risks saves tax money in the long run, and contributes to community well-being.

The Coalition got its start in May 2003 as the Youth Advisory Group (YAG) through a Youth Issues Forum convened by WorkSource and the Community Action Network. In 2005, the group officially changed its name to the Ready by 21 Coalition in recognition of our partnership with the Forum for Youth Investment www.forumforyouthinvestment.org which is leading a national Ready by 21 TM initiative.

The Ready by 21 (or RB21) Coalition is sponsored by WorkSource - the Greater Austin Area Workforce Board as part of its mission to connect people to the resources they need and to build partnerships and support efforts that go into creating and developing a talented workforce in Travis County. The RB21 Coalition serves as the Youth Issues planning body of the Community Action Network. Coalition members are deeply involved in many initiatives throughout the community on behalf of children and youth.

The RB21 Coalition meets on the second Thursday of each month, from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. at WorkSource, 6505 Airport Blvd., Suite 101E (South side of building, along Highland Mall Boulevard). Most meetings are divided into a general session and breakout sessions for workgroups. Our current project workgroups are: the Youth Services Mapping team, the Youth Engagement team, the Millennium team, and the Go To College team.

New participants are welcome, and are encouraged to review past meeting notes on our meetings page http://www.readyby21austin.org/about-yag-meetings.php in preparation for joining the group.