Youth councils pave way for future leaders

By Todd McGee
Communications Director

Several findings from a survey of North Carolina high school students should get the attention of local government officials, according to Kelly O'Brien, director of the Civic Education Consortium (CEC).

Kelly O'Brien directs the Civic Education Consortium at UNC-Chapel Hill. (Photo by Jason King)

When asked if a government official had ever visited their classroom, only 26 percent of students said yes. Of those students, a higher percentage had a more favorable opinion of government than the 74 percent of respondents who had not been visited by an official. In addition, students who had been visited by a government official were more likely to consider a career in government.

Numbers like these are why O'Brien and the CEC encourage local governments to create Youth Advisory Councils.

"Research tells us having a Youth Advisory Council is a valuable experience for the young people as well as the adult leaders," she said Feb. 3 during a presentation to the NCACC Board of Directors. "Young people ultimately realize issues are not black-and-white, they are complex."

As a part of Cleveland County Commissioner Mary Accor's presidential initiative on youth, the Association is interested in helping commissioners identify resources for changing the dynamics of youth engagement at the county level. Of particular concern to commissioners, borne out by findings of the NCACC strategic plan, has been the lack of a pipeline for developing the next generation of county government leaders.

O'Brien provided some guidelines for counties that are considering setting up a Youth Advisory Council. She said it is important to have a separate council for the youth, instead of simply adding a seat on existing committees for a youth representative. Being the lone youth representative on a committee filled with adults can be intimidating, and many youths in these situations do not contribute much to the committee's deliberations.

She also said it was important to reach out and recruit youths who are not the "usual suspects," such as Student Body Council presidents or others who are already engaged in civic issues.

"It's important that you try to involve kids who are not already engaged," she said. "You want to broaden the net as much as possible. The councils create a pipeline of future leaders. You create a group of people who know what county government does."

The City of Sanford/Lee County Youth Council was started in 2007 and is designed to enhance positive public awareness of the services provided by local governments and to encourage students to consider a career in public service, according to Lee County Strategic Initiative Director Lesa Price.

The program included a series of twice-monthly meetings that expose students to the many services and programs offered by city and county governments. Students are often given assignments to complete after sessions.

Youth Council members also serve on various county boards, such as the Board of Health and the Parks and Recreation Commission, and two Youth Council members were selected for a paid 10-week summer internship with the city and county governments. That program was funded through a CEC grant, Price said.

The Catawba County Youth Council started in October 2007 and has 27 members, said Donna Mull of Catawba County Cooperative Extension. The council consists of representatives from each of the county's public high schools as well as representatives from private schools and six community organizations, such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and the NAACP, Mull said.

Interested students fill out an application to join, and the officers of the council review the applications and decide which ones to select. Mull said that the number of applications has grown as word about the council spreads.

Mull said this year's council decided to create three committees – one for elementary children, one for middle school students and one for high school students – that would each come up with an issue to work on for their audience.

"They look at issues in the county they are concerned about and then identify projects they want to work on that address those issues," said Mull.

This year's projects include a reading program through the public library for elementary school children, information about teen pregnancy for middle school students and a safe driving program for high school students.

The council meets each month except for the summer, and does not receive any direct funding from local governments.