The White House Conference on Children and Youth was a series of meetings hosted over 60 years by the

President of the United States of America The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

, and the first White House conference ever held. Under the leadership of Presidents

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

, and

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

, the Conferences involved thousands of delegates from around the country. According to the

Child Welfare League of America The Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that coordinates efforts for child welfare in the United States, and provides direct support to agencies that serve children and families. The organization's visio ...

, "the conferences were devoted to improving the lives of children across the Nation." Each conference focused on issues relevant to the decade in which the conference was held.

Topics

* 1909 - Entitled the "White House Conference on the Care of Dependent Children," the theme was opposition to the institutionalization of dependent and neglected children. * 1919 - The "White House Conference on Standards of Child Welfare" created the most comprehensive report on the needs of children ever written. * 1929 - The most comprehensive report on the needs of children ever written was created at the "Conference on the Standards of Child Welfare." * 1939 - The "Conference on Children in a Democracy" highlighted the democratic values, services, and environment necessary for the welfare of children. * 1950 - This conference focused on the healthy personality development of children and youth and was historic for several reasons including: for the first time youth themselves were invited to attend (and nearly 400 attended representing every state in the union); recommendations emerging from the conference acknowledged the unique health and development needs of youth - shifting the federal dialogue of adolescent health for the first time beyond teen pregnancy and juvenile delinquency, and called for an ecological and strength based approach to improving their health and wellbeing. * 1960 - The "Golden Anniversary White House Conference on Children and Youth" expanded ways for children to explore their potential in order to discover creative freedom. * 1971 - The "White House Conference on Children and Youth was split into two conferences, one on children, the other on youth. The children's conference focused on the individuality of children through the support of healthy personality development. It took place in Washington, D.C. The youth conference focused on a number of issues affecting people ages 14–24, including values, ethics, and culture, foreign affairs, race relations, and legal rights and justice. It was held from April 18 to April 21, 1971 at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado. Over one thousand delegates representing every state and U.S. territory were nominated by their respective governors and appointed by the President. This late April meeting was marred by a snowstorm that required the mobilization of nearby

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

personnel to distribute winter gear to delegates unprepared for severe winter weather. Held at the height of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

and amid growing youth dissatisfaction with the

Nixon administration Richard Nixon's tenure as the 37th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1969, and ended when he resigned on August 9, 1974, in the face of almost certain impeachment because of the Watergate Scanda ...

, many of the recommendations issued by the conference opposed existing U.S. policies.

Future events

Legislation to convene a White House Conference on Children and Youth in 2010 was filed in both the House and Senate in 2008. On February 14, 2008, the House bill was filed by Congressman Fattah. On March 13, Senator

Mary Landrieu Mary Loretta Landrieu ( ; born November 23, 1955) is an American entrepreneur and politician who served as a United States senator from Louisiana from 1997 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, Landrieu served as the Louisiana State Treas ...

introduced a Senate bill to re-establish a White House Conference on Children and Youth (S 2771). These bipartisan bills would have created a two-year event focusing on child welfare issues and challenges. They did not pass.

References

{{Reflist

External links

White House Conference on Children and Youth Records
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library

(Director of Interpretation, White House Conference on Children and Youth), Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library Reports of the United States government Children's rights in the United States White House conferences

Topics

Future events

See also

References

External links