Culturally Responsive Programming for Asian American Adolescents: Insights from Community-Based Program Leaders

In this study, we qualitatively explored the perspectives of Asian American program leaders who designed and oversaw community-based after-school programs serving Asian American adolescents. We focused on the developmental goals prioritized by these programs and the strategies program leaders found helpful in mitigating challenges they faced. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with seven Asian American program leaders (43% female; 86% U.S.-born) managing community-based after-school programs serving Asian American adolescents located in the Southern California county. Thematic analysis, using both inductive and deductive approaches, identified key themes regarding how program leaders considered and prioritized certain developmental goals and needs for Asian American adolescents in their programs and navigated program challenges. Findings suggest that programs supported Asian American adolescent development by fostering: (1) community-centered skills and (2) adolescents’ individual skills and well-being. Leaders addressed challenges such as meeting diverse developmental needs and culture of the adolescents and managing workforce and funding precarity through community support and leveraging staff strengths. Insights from this study offer practitioners a guideline to design and implement practices that leverage community strengths and advance equity for Asian American adolescents.