If you’re a high school student interested in giving back to your community, our Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) is accepting applications for the 2018-19 school year!

The Community Foundation’s YAC is made up of high school students from all around the Tri-Cities area. YAC members meet once a month to discuss and assess youth issues prevalent in the community, as well as to review grant proposals made to benefit youth in the community.

Applications for the 2018-19 school year are due Friday, May 18.

Students from GHHS, SLHS, Central High School, WMCHS, and those who are home-schooled, who are going into their sophomore or junior year are invited to apply.

“Inspiring youth to help others is the most important step to making lasting change because change is a chain reaction and can’t be left for one generation to solve. If generations to follow want to respect and help everything around them, I see that as a step in the right direction to making the world a better place. This being said, the best way to inspire youth is giving them someone like them to aspire to be. Which is exactly why I have a passion for being a part of YAC.

 

One of our biggest priorities is to have a diverse group of leaders come together in a place they can make change. Every student on our committee is someone of good character and can be looked up to. Each and every day they inspire others through their action to want to make a difference and that is exactly what YAC is about—inspiring others to want to make change for those to come and those already around them.” – Ellen Stolarski, junior, GHHS

“The beauty of the Youth Advisory Council is the outreach it provides students like myself to not only change the lives of local children, but the future of our community as well. Programs funded through our grants have greatly impacted local children: giving sick children a carefree day with their family, providing adequate safe play spaces for recreation, and helping families from near and far access healthcare. However, I believe that the true impact of YAC is much greater. All programs funded or created by our council have the goal of empowering youth to tackle the problems our community face currently and in the future.

 

Our initiative, Spark Tank, tasked local students to work together and creatively solve a problem they saw in their school. This initiative gave the students the tools required to be the next generation of leaders: creativity, teamwork, compromising, and public speaking. I believe that this initiative not only provided the tools required to lead, but the confidence that they can foster change. The work in empowering youth is incredibly important because if our generation can assume their leading roles in society with the confidence and tools to create meaningful change, our world will be a much better place.– Charlie Parker, junior, SLHS

We love to hear from intelligent, community-minded students like you, and we look forward to reading your application.

View the online application.

Questions? Email Lauren Grevel, Education & Youth Initiatives Officer, at lgrevel@ghacf.org.