Adam Fletcher is a writer, speaker and consultant focused on

youth voice Youth voice refers to the distinct ideas, opinions, attitudes, knowledge, and actions of young people as a collective body. The term youth voice often groups together a diversity of perspectives and experiences, regardless of backgrounds, identit ...

and student engagement, and recognized for founding

The Freechild Project The Freechild Institute for Youth Engagement is a nonprofit organization focused on creating connections between adults and young people through programs, technical assistance, publications, training, and curriculum. Adam Fletcher is the executiv ...

. His work centers on

youth studies Youth studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to the study of the Youth development, development, :History of youth, history, Youth culture, culture, psychology, and Youth politics, politics of youth. The field studies not only specif ...

, critical thinking and the development of democratic society, and has been acknowledged as "perhaps the best spokesman for the philosophical basis of

community youth development Community Youth Development (CYD) is a philosophy emphasizing the symbiotic nature of youth development to community development The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collec ...

Action for Healthy Kids Action for Healthy Kids is a nationwide grassroots network mobilizing school professionals, families and communities to take actions that support the health of the whole child. Founded in 2002, the organization is committed to addressing the root ...

named him a "Healthy Schools Hero" in 2010. Fletcher was a youth worker in several

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organizations and in government agencies for more than a decade. He completed his undergraduate degree in

critical pedagogy Critical pedagogy is a philosophy of education and social movement that developed and applied concepts from critical theory and related traditions to the field of education and the study of culture. It insists that issues of social justice and de ...

and

The Evergreen State College The Evergreen State College is a public liberal arts college in Olympia, Washington. Founded in 1967, it offers a non-traditional undergraduate curriculum in which students have the option to design their own study towards a degree or follow a p ...

, and conducted graduate studies at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

in educational leadership and policy studies. He graduated from

Omaha North High School Omaha North High Magnet School is a public high school located at 4410 North 36th Street in the city of Omaha, Nebraska. The school is a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) magnet school in the Omaha Public Schools district. N ...

North Omaha, Nebraska North Omaha is a community area in Omaha, Nebraska, in the United States. It is bordered by Cuming and Dodge Streets on the south, Interstate 680 on the north, North 72nd Street on the west and the Missouri River and Carter Lake, Iowa on the ea ...

. Since 2007, Fletcher has been the owner and lead consultant of CommonAction Consulting. Working with educators and government administrators around the world, his consultancy focuses on

democratic education Democratic education is a type of formal education that is organized democratically, so that students can manage their own learning and participate in the governance of their school. Democratic education is often specifically emancipatory, with ...

. Additionally, he regularly speaks at local, state, national and international conferences across North America, in Brazil and beyond. Fletcher has also served as a director and advisor to several organizations including the

National Youth Rights Association The National Youth Rights Association (NYRA) is a youth-led Civil and political rights led by Margin Zheng & Ashawn Dabney-Small President & Vice-President of NYRA organization in the United States promoting youth rights, with approximately 10,0 ...

and others, and is a contributing editor to the ''Review of Education, Pedagogy and Cultural Studies'', published by

Taylor and Francis Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...

.
Review of Education, Pedagogy and Cultural Studies
'', Taylor and Francis. Retrieved 11/10/08. He has written more than 50 publications related to education,

youth work Youth work is community support activity aimed at older children and adolescents. Depending upon the culture and the community, different services and institutions may exist for this purpose. In the United Kingdom youth work is the process of cre ...

and

social change Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Definition Social change may not refer to the notion of social progress or sociocult ...

Select bibliography

* ''North Omaha History, Volume Three'' (2016) * ''North Omaha History, Volume Two'' (2016) * ''North Omaha History, Volume One'' (2016) * ''Facing Adultism'' (2015) * ''The Guide to Student Voice, 2nd edition.'' (2014) * ''The Practice of Youth Engagement'' (2014) * ''School Boards of the Future: A Guide to Students as Education Decision-Makers'' (2014) * ''The Freechild Project Guide to Youth-Driven Programming.'' (2013) * ''Suffering Love, Laughing at Myself'' (2013) * ''SoundOut Student Voice Curriculum.'' (2007)

References

External links

Adam Fletcher website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Adam Canadian educational theorists Canadian activists Writers from Olympia, Washington Writers from Calgary Canadian social sciences writers Youth empowerment people Youth rights people Canadian expatriates in the United States Evergreen State College alumni 1975 births Canadian consultants Living people Omaha North High School alumni