The Gardner Center partner with communities, researchers, and practitioners to conduct rigorous research, support evidence-based practices to improve and strengthen the well-being of youth, and emphasize equity and capacity-building in youth-serving organizations. Visit COVID-19 Resources for Teachers & Families.
Welcome
Research
Cultivating Collective Responsibility for Postsecondary Success
Read the first in a serie of case studies highlighting the challenges, creative policy responses, and exemplary practices in California’s legislatively created public alternative high schools.
The Relationship of Moderate and Late Preterm Birth to Education Outcomes
An interdisciplinary team at the School of Medicine and the Gardner Center, including Executive Director Amy Gerstein, co-authored an article appearing in the most recent Journal of Pediatrics.
Youth Action Research Fellowships: A Win-Win-Win
Supported by a grant from College Futures Foundation, we recently partnered with Kern Community Foundation to design and implement a Youth Action Research Fellowship. The Fellowship leveraged the Gardner Center’s expertise with youth-led research to engage six need-based scholarship recipients in building youth voice and generating data to inform efforts to advance equitable college attainment.
Our Team
Our interdisciplinary team includes students, researchers, faculty, and more.
John W. Gardner (1912-2002)
"John W. Gardner’s work and his vision were always about equality, justice, and the promise of human potential. He saw what so many people see as society’s insoluble problems as breathtaking opportunities. His vision for young people’s role in communities will live on through the work of the John W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities."
-Milbrey McLaughlin
Founding Faculty Director
View a Timeline of John W. Gardner's Life
John W. Gardner Papers
Stanford Libraries is home to many of Gardner’s personal and professional papers. There are also recordings and photographs from throughout his life, and a collection of oral histories. A Spotlight exhibit serves as an introduction to this archive, highlighting Gardner’s life and his lasting impact on education, public service, and Stanford University.
To learn more about Gardner's life and the collections at Stanford, you can access the Spotlight exhibit here.
Credit: John W. Gardner Papers (SCO908)
