A Youth Leader's Guide to Building Cultural Competence 

Chapter Six 

Presenting Multicultural Programs 

As a youth leader or teacher who cares about cultural competence, you want to provide youth with 

effective programs that engage them, speak to their cultural experience, reinforce positive health 

messages received at home and help them be comfortable with their racial and ethnic identities and sexual 

orientation. Some tips for doing that include:  

1.  Include program leaders, guest speakers or volunteers who share the same cultural background as the 

group members. Have both men and women involved with the program.  

2.  Incorporate traditional cultural elements.  

Find the cultural beliefs and practices that reinforce the attitudes and skills your program seeks 

to build. Be creative in using traditions that can inform and shape a variety of program 

activities.

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3.  Assume there is a wide range of views, particularly about sexuality issues, in your group.  

Understand how some of the HIV/AIDS prevention messages might be the same as, or 

different from, family values and practices.  

Model the willingness to hear ideas different from your own.  

4.  Remember that group members are individuals, not representatives of their ethnic or racial group and 

that even the best understanding of a particular ethnic, racial or cultural group is no substitute for 

getting to know the individuals in the program.  

5.  Encourage the involvement of your teens' family members in program plans and activities.  

Reach out to families. Plan family based experiences during hours convenient for families. 

Assign fun  homework  assignments that encourage young people to talk to their parents or 

other family members.  

View the family as a positive source of spiritual and cultural strength as well as a primary 

source of information, education and support.

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In planning family involvement, however, bear in mind that not all families are supportive 

6.  Make sure that activities, discussions, videos, written materials, and guest speakers reflect the cultural 

and ethnic diversity of the students, the community and society in general.

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Choose wisely: a terrific video featuring urban African American teens would be an excellent 

selection for urban African American teens, but would probably be inappropriate for a middle 

class suburban African American group.  

7.  If your group has diverse cultures and backgrounds represented in it, help build alliances across 

groups by using structured and purposeful activities. Mix young people up in teams and partnerships 

and have them work together to reach a common goal.

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8.  Recognize the cultural roots of some teenagers' behavior.  

Know that children and teenagers in different cultures are taught to behave differently. In some 

cultures, children are encouraged to submit without question to parental authority, keep quiet 

and to contribute to family harmony by keeping to strict gender role behaviors. In other 

cultures, children are taught to speak their minds, to question parental authority and to not 

limit their behaviors in gender specific ways.  

Don't expect all teenagers to be animated, talkative, openly curious or eager to question  what 

boys can do and what girls can do. 

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9.  Support young people's exploration of their ethnic and racial identity. 

Seek information from teens about the views they hold about their racial, ethnic and cultural 

backgrounds.  

Support teens as they  try on  various identities and try out different roles.