Submitted by: Joanne Waszczak
Submitting Department: Legislative
Agenda Section: Discussion
Item Title:
title
FY23 Budget Initiative: Establishment of Youth Advisory Council
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Suggested Action:
recommendation
I move that the City Council establish a Youth Advisory Council for the City of Hyattsville.
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Summary Background:
The City of Hyattsville needs a Youth Advisory Council (YAC) to guide and drive our programs, services and facilities for young people; to increase the turnout of younger voters in our local elections; and to advise the City Council about how policies will impact our younger residents.
Additionally, there is evidence of pent-up demand for the City to recognize and support youth leadership. We see young people actively participating in City programs and services and other local events. We hear younger residents expressing that they would like to engage in local decision-making, particularly to ensure that the needs, perspectives, and interests of youth are incorporated and seriously considered. We also know that young people of color and youth from low income households need a seat at the table so we can build more equitable futures for them.
In 2021, the City invested $500,000 in a new Teen Center (5812 40th Avenue) that is slated to open in the near future. Teens are more likely to utilize facilities (e.g., teen centers, skate parks) and attend programs and services (e.g., camps, tutoring, service projects) when they are engaged in the design of the space, the programming, the ground rules, etc. “If you build it, they won’t necessarily come….Experienced teen program personnel know that the key to attracting and sustaining teen participation is to involve them in all aspects of program design.” * The YAC would work closely with City staff to design facilities, programs, and services for young people, and to engage additional youth in those processes as well.
In 2015, the City passed a charter amendment that gave 16- and 17-year-olds the right and responsibility to actively engage in the local electoral process. In the last 4 election cycles, approximately 300 16- and 17-year-olds have taken the opportunity to register to vote, and the youth turnout has averaged approximately 20%, with a high of 41% in 2021. The YAC would be tasked with advising City Council, the City Clerk’s Office, and the Board of Supervisors of Elections about ways to encourage young people to register to vote and increase the turnout amongst younger voters.
Establishing a YAC would have multiple positive impacts on the City:
• During policymaking, City Council would send items to the YAC for review, comment, and recommendation, as we do with other City Advisory Committees, Boards, Commissions and Task Forces.
o The YAC would advise City Council about potential intended and unintended impacts of policies on young people (positive, neutral, and negative).
o Members would share their experiences with City programs, services, and facilities, serve as liaisons between youth and policymakers, identify opportunities and challenges that City Council or the YAC could address or solve, and recommend policies, decisions and actions.
• City Council would ask the YAC for input about the needs of Hyattsville’s younger residents.
• The YAC would prepare and present recommendations for City Council consideration, as other Advisory Bodies do.
• City Council, the City Clerk’s Office, Youth Programs and Services Team Members and other City staff would mentor and coach this cadre of young people who are eager to be civically engaged at the local level.
• The City’s Youth Programs and Services Team Members would serve as near-peer mentors to all YAC Members, and the Senior YAC Members would serve as near-peer mentors to the Junior YAC Members.
Membership:
• The YAC would engage a total of sixteen (16) 12- to 20-year-old Hyattsville residents.
o The Junior YAC would be comprised of eight (8) 12- to 15-year-old Hyattsville residents who apply and are selected.
o The Senior YAC would be comprised of eight (8) 16- to 20-year-old Hyattsville residents who apply and are selected.
• Members would have two-year terms, consistent with other City advisory bodies.
• Members could attend any school as long as they reside in Hyattsville.
• As with other advisory bodies, the City would strive for a diverse membership in terms of Ward, race, ethnicity, income level, gender, and ability.
ANTICIPATED STAFF RESOURCES REQUIRED TO IMPLEMENT:
• Establishing the YAC would require start-up efforts.
• Sustaining the YAC would require the assignment of one or two Staff Liaisons for each group (Senior and Junior), as well as two Council Liaisons for each group. This could incur some new costs in that the YAC Staff Liaisons would need time to prepare for and facilitate Senior and Junior YAC activities and meetings.
• The YAC could recommend additional youth programs, services, and facilities for City Council consideration; if approved, those could require additional resources.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION:
• The City of Hyattsville had a Teen Advisory Committee as recently as 2017.
• Creating and Sustaining a Thriving Youth Advisory Council. Authors: Michigan Department of Community Health, University of Michigan Health System Adolescent Health, Youth Advisory Coalition of YACs consisting of six YACs from across the state of Michigan. 2017. <https://umhs-adolescenthealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/manual-for-website.pdf>
• Citation *: Developing Spaces by and For Teens in Out-of-School-Time Programs. Maryellen Coffey, Kambiz Maalim, Mav Pardee, Bronia Clifton, Georgia Hall. 2018. <https://cedac.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Developing-spaces-by-and-for-teens-BOSTnet-and-CIF-2007.pdf>
Next Steps:
Staff evaluation and Council discussion.
• Design the application and selection process for YAC.
• Design the training and onboarding process for the YAC.
• As appropriate, partner with and adopt best practices from organizations like the Maryland Municipal League, the National League of Cities, and the National Recreation and Park Association.
Fiscal Impact:
NTE $15,100 in FY23
• See attached estimated draft annual budget for YAC, which includes funding for a get out the youth vote campaign, an annual youth symposium, and an annual competitive scholarship program.
• The YAC may recommend additional programs, services, and facilities for the City Council to consider.
City Administrator Comments:
Recommend Approval.
The City had a Teen Advisory Committee in the past. The attendance was sporadic and there was a need for extensive staff oversight. The committee was dis-banded due to lack of quorum and lack of attendance and interest from teens. They did, however, host a candidate forum and proposed other creative ideas that the City staff had to further develop and execute. This program remains a great way to engage youth in decision making and planning. It may be best developed with community volunteers who can support the program by mentoring teens. That will limit staff time, but will also allow staff to encourage and engage youth in government, programs and learning opportunities outside of the classroom.
Staff Capacity - The previous workload was significant and may require part-time staff member which will add an additional $20K to the proposed budget. Costs can be reduced if we consider one or two qualified volunteers who can assist with the leadership, direction, build out of the committee roles and responsibilities, marketing and expansion. The volunteers will also serve as liaisons to the committee along with a staff member and council liaison.
Committee - We recommend starting with a smaller group of 5 to 10 youth and scale the program to grow along with associated resources including funding and staffing. The smaller group can begin to develop and coordinate the program and expand into a pre-teen and teen committee if supportable.
This may also present an opportunity to get more youth engaged in the Real Talk series which was established to draw attention to issues in the community that may affect teens to get them interested in joining and re-establishing the Committee.
The City Clerk indicates that the Board of Supervisors of Election has discussed greater youth engagement by adding 1-2 youth members to the Board and developing a youth poll worker program, like the Future Vote program in Montgomery County. They are actively engaged in the University of Maryland School of Public Policy Coalition for Vote16 and the City Clerk serves as a member of the coalition steering committee to encourage youth voting. The Board is interested in supporting this effort and encouraging participation in election activities.
Community Engagement:
• The YAC would engage a total of 16 young people ages 12-20.
• During the establishment of the YAC, the City Clerk’s Office and the Youth Programs and Services Team would ask the City’s Race and Equity Committee, Health, Wellness and Recreation Advisory Committee, and Education Advisory Committee for recommendations about how to successfully recruit, select, train, onboard, and retain a YAC membership that reflects the diversity of our City in terms of Ward, race, ethnicity, income level, gender, and ability.
Strategic Goals:
Goal 1 - Ensure Transparent and Accessible Governance
Legal Review Required?
N/A