The Logic of Including Youth in Organizational Decision-Making

 

Karrah R. Lompa

karrah@earthlink.net

Seattle University, MNPL 2002

 

It is important to realize that the framework of youth inclusion extends beyond youth serving as not-for-profit or community volunteers – youth inclusion in this context refers to youth being part of the decision-making bodies, or having significant influence on organizational decisions that are made.

 

The philosophy behind youth inclusion is that young people have unique perspectives, opinions, ideas and solutions to offer and that they deserve to be included in the discussions about the issues facing our organizations and our community.  Young people often approach organizations and community issues from a point of view that adults tend to disregard as unimportant, immature or ‘not serious’.  The reality is that for most youth serving organizations, the ideas or solutions posited by youth (our constituents) may present new ways of accomplishing our mission.

 

 

Some of the resources that an organization needs to have in place before deciding to implement an organizational philosophy of youth inclusion in decision-making.

·       What is our mission?  Who do we serve? 

·       Who is currently making decisions? 

·       Does youth inclusion in decision-making make sense for our organization? 

Cornerstone tenets that need to exist:

·       The belief that young people have something to offer, that their opinions and input need to become part of the discussion.

·       That youth are partners who can bring a new perspective to the decision-making process.

·       That youth are stakeholders in our organizations, that they are not solely service recipients.

·       That young people have a right to represent themselves, not to be represented only by adults.

 

A sampling of the activities that the organization will need to complete in order to fully and successfully implement a youth inclusion philosophy throughout the organization.

·       Legalities and Governance Structures/Authority

o      State Law

o      By Laws

o      Liability Issues

·       Recruitment and Selection

·       Orientation and Training

·       The Environment and Organizational Culture

o      Rapport

o      Mentors

o      Logistics

 

A beginning list of ideas on ways to include youth in decision-making, or the outputs of adopting the philosophy.

·       Board members

·       Committee members

·       Council/Advisory members

·       Task Force members

·       Organizational or program planners

·       Consultants/Advisors

·       Program evaluators

·       Strategic planning

·       Youth conferences

·       Fund-raising

·       Staff members

·       Special projects

·       Volunteers

·       Interns

 

The vast array of youth involvement opportunities can generally be divided into two broad categories:

(1) include youth in existing structures currently run by adults

(2) create an adjunct structure intended only for youth

 

The outcomes of youth inclusion and the impact it has on the youth.

By involving youth in decision-making, youth are exposed to higher levels of community

engagement, new and creative leadership opportunities, expanded networks and an

exposure to the not-for-profit sector.