A youth case manager talking with a teenager seated on a couch

Family & Youth Services

Every young person is building toward something.

Mentoring/case management, job readiness, health education, and support for teens, young adults, and young parents across Santa Barbara County — on their terms, at their pace.

Our Approach · Positive Youth Development

Every young person has strengths and deserves a caring adult in their corner. The Positive Youth Development (PYD) framework is a research-based approach that focuses on co-creating positive outcomes by building on youth’s strengths and assets. Our positive youth development framework teaches:

✓ Competence

✓ Confidence

✓ Connection

✓ Character

✓ Caring

✓ Compassion

Our Programs

Different programs. One belief: our youth matter.

A young mother laughing with her young child

For expectant & young parents · ages 12–21

Adolescent Family Life Program (AFLP)

Strengths-based case management for young parents — primarily mothers ages 12–21. A case manager meets one-on-one with each young parent to build a caring relationship, understand their goals, and help them access what they need: finishing school, postpartum health, babies’ health, trauma-informed therapeutic services, mentoring, and connections to community resources.

Goal settingFostering healthy relationshipsEducation and employment planningCulturally responsive staffBasic-needs assessment and service navigationParenting and life skills development

Get Started →

A young woman smiling in a workshop classroom, with peers working at a table behind her

School-to-workforce · ages 15–18 · North & Mid County

Empower U

A school-to-workforce pipeline for youth who have been or are at-risk of truancy, suspension, expulsion or justice involvement. In partnership with the Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board and the Foundation for California Community Colleges, Empower U pairs each young person with a mentor/case manager and builds toward paid work experience in the community.

MentoringInterest inventoriesGoal settingConflict resolutionJob readinessResume & interview skillsPaid work experienceA full year of follow-up

Volunteers passing donated canned food into boxes together

Community collaboration · South Coast

South Coast Youth Safety Partnership (SCYSP)

A partnership of 40+ southern Santa Barbara County organizations working together to improve and support the safety and quality of life for youth, their families, and our communities by reducing gang activity.

Regional conveningYouth summitYouth policy councilPYD trainingCoaching and technical assistance

Visit the SCYSP Website ↗

Why This Matters

Stability changes everything.

Nothing shapes a young person’s future like stability — and the people who show up for them consistently.

When life throws one thing after another at a family, stability is the first thing to go. CommUnify’s Family & Youth Services exists to be the steady presence: staff who show up, week after week, and help young people build resilience, access resources, and take ownership of where they’re headed.

A CommUnify staff member sitting down with a family

Our Approach

Positive Youth Development

Every young person has strengths, deserves supportive relationships, and has something real to contribute to their family and community. That belief shapes every program in this division.

The Difference Is Who Stays

The difference is who stays.

The young people we serve have often had plenty of adults pass through their lives. What they haven’t always had is someone who stays — who shows up every week, listens, and helps them figure out the next step.

That’s the role of a CommUnify case manager or mentor. Not someone managing a case. Someone in your corner.

National Compadres NetworkPromotoresCommunity events

A CommUnify team member giving supportive care to a child

Support That Stays

By the Numbers

The work, by the numbers.

9

Unique programs serving youth & family

250

Youth served by FYS programs in 2025

43

Expectant or parenting youth assisted in 2023

9,300+

Diapers & baby wipes provided in 2023

Not sure where to start?

Start with our free screening, and we’ll help you understand what’s available — for the young person in your life and for your whole family. You may also qualify for other CommUnify programs, from child care to utility assistance — support you might not have known to ask about.