Youth Council Town Hall Showcases Youth Engagement

The Youth Council has been BUSY since the last Town Hall in October!  They have traveled 722 miles, met with 7 elected officials, and developed 3 local collaborations. During the Town Hall they reported on their vision, and successes so far, in turning youth civic engagement into tangible action. 

Substance Use Prevention

The Youth Council’s trip to Washington centered on advocating for substance use prevention, and at their spring Town Hall in April, they discussed how exposure to other coalitions challenged them to think more expansively about community engagement, which led to a collaborative campaign with the Village of Pelham and Pelham Manor police departments for National Drug Take Back Day. 

Youth Mental Health

A second group of Youth Council members travelled to Albany to focus on youth mental health first aid (MHFA) training. Since then the Youth Council has begun collaborating with students from Mamaroneck High School’s OCRA (Original Civic Research and Action) program, particularly seniors Zakri Stugatskiy and Gray Hackett, whose work advocating for MHFA training within their own district resonated strongly with our Youth Council. 

What began as shared dialogue surrounding youth mental health and stigma has since evolved into collaborative planning, with students looking forward to jointly meeting with Senators Shelly Mayer and Nathalia Fernandez to demonstrate growing constituent support for MHFA initiatives. The students are also exploring outreach to New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) to better understand how educators across the state perceive MHFA training for both students and staff.

Seal of Civic Readiness

The Town Hall also introduced the Youth Council’s partnership with PMHS’ Seal of Civic Readiness program—a New York State initiative — which will culminate in the Civic Action Celebration on June 2nd. 

During the celebration Pelham Together will launch its inaugural Civic Engagement Fair, a chance to connect students directly with a wide range of local civic organizations and service opportunities. The goal, ultimately, is to build on the Seal’s mission by communicating that civic engagement at its best is not simply a school requirement—it can become a lifelong, practice to improve your local community.