Youth to get a say in town affairs

Published in the February 27, 2020 edition.

By MARK SARDELLA

WAKEFIELD — Wakefield will soon have an official way for the youth of the town to have a voice in local government. The Town Council voted unanimously this week to create an 11-member Youth Council that will include residents in the 13-18 age group.

At Monday’s Town Council meeting, School Committee member Ann Fortier said that she and Town Councilor Julie Smith-Galvin were at Parent University last year doing a presentation on town government when a parent in the audience, Elizabeth Parsons, asked if the town had ever considered creating a Youth Council.

She said that Parsons has been integral in the discussions of ways that the town’s youth cannot just have a voice but play an active part in town affairs.

Catherine Dhingra, the town’s Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator, said that she got involved because she works with the town’s Youth Action Team (YAT) on issues of health and wellness. She said that she brought the idea of a Youth Council to the YAT for discussion and one YAT member, Eric Keefe, a junior at Wakefield Memorial High School, decided to take it on as a research project. He looked into the structure and function of Youth Councils across the state and the country and, together with Dhingra, Fortier, Parsons and others, formulated a proposal for a Wakefield Youth Council.

At the Town Council meeting on Monday, Keefe said that the Wakefield Youth Council would be a platform for Wakefield residents ages 13-18 to serve as youth leaders in the community, empowered to share policy ideas and youth perspectives. He said that Wakefield Youth Council members will learn how to be able to effectively advocate, be engaged in town issues and actively participate in local government. They will communicate and advocate for youth issues in the appropriate forum(s) and represent a cross-section of the town’s neighborhoods, sexes, races/ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities and ages, Keefe said. They will implement projects that will benefit the town’s youth population, schools and the community at large.

Keefe talked about the structure of the proposed Youth Council.

There would be one adult advisor to be appointed by the Town Council. An 11-member Youth Council will be appointed by the Town Council following the usual appointment procedures as other town committees. A Youth Council member application will be developed by the adult advisor and will be available online and in paper form. Resumes will not be required but applicants will be encouraged to identify qualities and reasons why they should be appointed.

The Youth Council member will serve for a term of one year. Youth Council members will include three middle school age students (7th and 8th graders) and eight high school age students.

The School Superintendent and Town Administrator will be ex-officio members. All Wakefield residents age 13-18 are encouraged to participate in any meetings of the Youth Council and to raise any ideas, issues or concerns to the Youth Council.

As a fully-appointed committee of the Town, Youth Council Members will be expected to  meet at least monthly in duly posted meetings, maintain meeting minutes, elect a Chair and Vice Chair and create agendas including public participation so any non-member youth or adults can present issues for the Council’s consideration. They will also assign liaisons to other town committees or departments and the Town Administrator will ensure that the liaisons are allowed to actively participate at meetings.

The Youth Council will report at least annually to the Town Council on activities and invite town leaders to their meetings to engage in conversation regarding town government issues and processes.

A $1,000 budget was proposed for the Youth Council was proposed. Town Administrator Stephen P. Maio said that the the money would come from available funds, so no separate appropriate was needed.

The Town Council will next appoint an adult advisor for the Youth Council who will help develop the application and determine the application process for members.

The Town Council is expected to advertise for members and appoint the Youth Council in the Spring of this year. Youth Council members will then work with the adult advisor to refine the Council’s mission, goals and structure.