Creating Change Through Youth Voices

                               

Youth In Action is creating a space where the voices of youth can be not only heard but seen in the changes they have made in their community.  For 19 years Youth in Action has been giving marginalized youth a place to express their hopes, dreams, and concerns for not only themselves but their communities.  Through their model of "Leading With" youth are able to feel equal to the adults who would traditionally be in charge.  As apposed to many school systems YIA gives youth and  adults the chance to work together to accomplish a common goal, decided by the youth.  Instead of the adults telling the youth how to think, the youth are able to work through issues themselves with guidance and encouragement.

YIA allows the youth to be involved in every decision made in the organization.  This not only allows the youths opinions to be validated but it also helps youth to see the reality of running an organization.  They are able to see the behind the scenes details that go into the day to day operations of running a nonprofit.  This teaches the youth another set of skills, on top of the emotional, social, and problem solving skills they develop through creating their voices.  One of YIA's main goals besides creating change in their community through the youth is also to change the stereotype or definition of youth in the community.  YIA feels that youth should be heard, as they are the future of the community.  What they see and what they are experiencing is real and if they can help to change it it will be better for the next generation.

One of the most interesting pieces of the reading was the section about the hot seat.  YIA allows the youth to be a part of the evaluation process, not only of their fellow youth but of the adults that lead them.  This is something that I think is so important.  Allowing the youth to have a say or contribute how they think their "leaders" could be better allows the youth to be better served.  Growing up I never felt like teacher evaluations meant anything.  Sure we filled them out but were there really an repercussions or changes based on what we said? It seemed 9 times out of 10 nothing changed.  If there was a group like YIA in my high school there would have been an outlet for youth to go to with concerns with issues such as policy changes or curriculum choices.

My favorite quote from the reading was, "success is not based on a piece of paper, but on the decisions students make and the confidence they have moving forward in their lives. That’s the real success." -GIOVANNI LARRACUENT