Among other things, I have been charged with researching the best practices for city-wide youth involvement programs.
It’s an issue close to my heart. The average age of our workforce will reach retirement in less than a decade. The Rapides Foundation has also recognized the exigency of the situation, which is one of the reasons they created the “Bring ‘Em Home CenLa” campaign through CAP.
Ever since I was a teenager, I have enjoyed participating in an open public discussion. Back then, The Town Talk featured a “Youth Council,” a group of a dozen or so high school students who wrote weekly columns about local events. I joined the Youth Council during my senior year and wrote prolifically long columns/diatribes (which, for whatever reason, actually got published). I remember writing a 2,500 word essay on school censorship, my magnum opus, and although it was published in full, I was identified as “Lamar Alexander,” the Tennessee Republican who had been running for President around the time. I thought it was comically awesome. I also was involved with different speech and debate events, Voice of Democracy competitions, and mock trial.
Today, there is no Youth Council at the paper. Speech and debate events, unfortunately, are no longer as common. And due, in part, to No Child Left Behind, public school funding for forensics and the arts has been diminished. Moreover, there are few job placement programs and very few internship opportunities.
There is no doubt Alexandria needs to engage with its young people, which is where Alexandria Corps comes in.
This is what we’ve come up with so far:
Throughout the nation, municipalities are beginning to understand the importance of involving young people
in short-term and long-term planning as well as the implementation and organization of certain city
programs and initiatives. Involving young people in the City’s planning process ensures that the needs and
hopes of the next generation are addressed and considered. Our City’s young people are major
stakeholders in the future of this City. It is imperative that City government recognizes and is capable of
responding to the opinions of this stakeholder group, which accounts for nearly a quarter of our entire
population.
Moreover, directly involving young people can create a unique enthusiasm around a project. It can inspire the entire community, and it can help students gain access to opportunities they otherwise could not experience. Statistically, communities which have employed effective Youth Participatory Programs have seen declines in drop-out rates and, relatedly, increases in graduation rates. They also instill civic-mindedness at an early age, and adults who participated in such programs as teenagers tend to be more likely to volunteer, vote, and express their opinions on City projects and programs.
According to a survey recently conducted of nearly 500 municipal leaders by the National League of Cities,
41% believe they are not accurately responding to the needs of young people. This is not simply a political
problem; it can quickly become a workforce problem. Cities that directly engage young people are cities
that attract and retain young people.
The Three Pathways:
Most experts believe that Hampton, Virginia (population 146,137) created the best model for Youth
Participatory Programs. Hampton’s program won Harvard University’s 2005 Award for Innovations in
American Government. Hampton identifies three major “pathways:”
Service: “Short-term meaningful volunteer opportunities introduce civic engagement to a broad range of
youth.” The example they use is an environmental program in which students helped to restore the Virginia
oyster population by essentially harvesting oysters themselves.
We can employ short-term volunteer programs throughout the City in a number of different areas.
Volunteering at the Zoo, for example, should not simply be the province of students assigned community
service for misdemeanor offenses. The City can also partner with organizations like Boy Scouts of America,
the Red Cross, and the Hope House to identify other short-term volunteer opportunities both locally and
regionally.
Influence: “With training, young people can participate in a variety of advisory roles that provide valuable
input.” For example, in Hampton, when teenagers were invited to join and participate in a “local
neighborhood planning process, they dramatically shifted the group’s direction of strategic investments.
Their input that a youth-focused facility proposed by the adults would go under-utilized ultimately saved the City over $3 million.”
We can engage young people in the planning and implementation of the Master Parks and Recreation Plan
as well as the development of a Comprehensive Meta-plan. We may also consider holding a series of
youth-oriented community meetings in order to determine how young people would like to see Alexandria in
the next twenty years.
Shared Leadership: “Youth serve in positions of authority and as voting members on city boards and
committees where they help to create policy.” In Hampton, such involvement resulted in the development of
a new Teen Center.
We can augment the Youth Advisory Council and then direct them to take on project-specific tasks. They
can also help the City to research, write, and propose specific ordinances regarding things like bicycle
safety.
What Can City Government Do?
1. Acknowledge young people as stakeholders in our shared future.
2. Identify skilled youth development professionals.
3. Identify productive work, appropriate tasks, and a schedule to accommodate young people.
4. Create opportunities to influence decisions.
5. Local government should be mindful of consulting young people, particularly on projects affecting young
people.
6. Local government should serve as a resource provider for young people, not merely as a regulator.
7. Share leadership by appointing young people to certain boards and committees.
8. Train young people for these roles of responsibility and allow them to partner with adults to help resolve
certain issues.
9. Hire young people as paid and unpaid interns. Allow them to become involved in the Planning and
Community Services Divisions.
The Hampton Model:
Other municipalities have followed this model, which was created in 1990, with measurable success.
Brighton, Colorado (population 33,000) explains their approach:
It also established that the Youth Commission’s membership will include 26 residents of Brighton; 20 high school-aged students, four young adults between the ages of 20 and 30, and two adults – one School Board member and one City Council member. City Council also charged the Youth Commission with the responsibility of working with the Youth Resources Coordinator and Master Plan Consultant in the creation of the Children, Youth and Family Master Plan.
The third aspect of City Council’s master planning initiative was to hire a consultant to conduct the process. This was done primarily to allow city officials to be equal participants in planning, to allow citizens to drive the process, and to gain the insights of a group experienced in creating youth master plans.
Following an open RFP process (Project #05-050), the firm Onsite-Insights was selected. The principal officers of Onsite-Insights were the chief architects of the Hampton, Virginia award winning youth master planner.
Alexandria Youth Master Plan:
A Youth Master Plan can complement our Parks and Recreation Master Plan, though its scope is distinctly different. A Youth Master Plan will call for a series of meetings with young people, School Board officials,teachers, and various stakeholders in order to assess the present and future needs of Alexandria’s nextgeneration. It will allow the City to determine which neighborhoods are being under-served and which facilities and programs are being under-utilized. Additionally, a Youth Master Plan will identify problems previously unreported or unknown, such as the feasibility of something like a skatepark or the need for a City swimming facility.
Like Brighton, Colorado, we may consider expanding the scope of a Youth Master Plan to include sections
that address the needs of young children and their families. The National League of Cities provides
resources and technical assistance in developing Youth Master Plans.
This is, indeed, a work in progress, and can only advance with the input and the advice of the entire community.
CenLamar 