12.10.10
A Rant on Youth Engagment–Real Life Story
Last night I had the privilege of attending the West Sacramento’s Washington Unified School District’s School Board meeting. I was there in support of West Sacramento’s Sactown Heroes, a part of the West Sacramento Youth Resource Coalition that has been funded by the Sierra Health Foundation REACH youth programs initiative. These amazing young people were there at the culmination of a year-long organizing endeavor where they were working to increase youth voice on the school board by changing the making the student board members voting privileges from an advisory one to an official voting member of the board. Students had studied the issues, researched other school districts that had a similar structure to what they desired and spoke on their own behalf. It was truly an honor to be a part of this night.
As school board members discussed the issue following the student’s comments, some thoughts came to my mind:
1. Don’t be dismissive of youth because you believe they are “young and impressionable”. The idea that because these individuals are young, their opinions can be swayed by adults is simply not valid. If you just take a look at our political system, you can see that adults are just as likely to be swayed in their opinions as young people. I would further venture to say that it has been my experience that when you have a young person who is deeply committed to an issue, you are less likely to see them swayed by anyone. A young person can provide a fresh, untainted voice that at times can be refreshingly raw and unedited.
2. Set high standards and let youth live up to them. If someone is currently sitting in the Student Board Member position and has been given clear expectations around attendance and job functions, hold them accountable to it, if he/she still fails to meet expectations, replace them with someone who can and will meet those expectations. If no clear expectations have been given, then make them and work hard alongside of the young person to mentor and coach them to success.
3. Another concern that was raised was having a high school student speaking on behalf of all the students (K-12). This concern seems unwarranted to me as I am fairly confident that each board member doesn’t have children representing each grade level. This student board member would have exactly the same challenges in making sure he/she is representing her constituents as the regular board members.
As the discussion continued, other concerns were raised as well around the ability of a young person to meet the workload, etc. The idea was raised by one of the board members about mentoring the young person who would be in this role (which is an EXCELLENT idea!). Finally the board president made a comment about not seeing this kind of system in place before and would want to do “research” of other places that are doing this already. It has always been my belief that the school board should be LEADING the way in what is best for our youth and not FOLLOWING others who have paved the way already. My challenge to the board is to BE ORIGINAL and LEAD. Do what is best for the youth of West Sacramento by giving them a voice that counts and not one that can easily be dismissed and patronized as many did last night.
To my young friends who took a stand and raised their voices to be ACTIVE and ENGAGED in their community, THANK YOU and continue to work at it. A mentor once wrote his young apprentice these words which I hope encourage and inspire you to continue to be change agents in your community:
“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example
for others in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”
Keep it up and thank you for the honor of being in your presence, there are many adults who DO know your power and potential and will continue to support you.
For those of you reading this rant, please show your support for the West Sacramento Youth Resource Coalition by visiting their website and emailing them messages of encouragement and support at www.westsacyouth.org
Most sincerely,
Scott Mautte
Youth Development Advocate
