Health – Youth Infusion

With almost surgical precision that flattens the hierarchical separation between policy professionals and non-experts, there is a resource that details tested techniques for any organization dedicated to authentic collaboration with those directly impacted by its priorities and policies.

Cultivating Possibilities was released in early 2025 to document the “first-of-its-kind exchange” at the 2024 White House Youth Policy Summit. The U.S. Department of Education took the lead role with five other federal agencies. Given that the Trump Administration has targeted the Department of Education for elimination, one might assume this blueprint is now irrelevant. Despite ongoing turmoil also at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor, and other agencies, this Summit was far more than a one-off photo-op. Ongoing follow-up may be at a standstill, but indelible changes have happened. The protocols and mindsets about the value of authentic engagement and how to partner with young people reflect an emerging trend at the state and local levels.

Think Nationally, Act Locally

If serious shared decision-making can happen in the vast federal bureaucracy, certainly state, county, and city organizations can adopt these fundamental principles and practices. Every city government and its infrastructure of agencies and commissions can use this framework. The same applies to community-based organizations from small neighborhood groups to large nonprofits.

For over 15 years, Hikma Sherka has been on the receiving end of token gestures where pizza and gift cards are how adults say thanks to young people who share their time and talents. In her recent position as Youth Engagement Coordinator in the Office of Secretary Dr. Miguel Cardona, Hikma told me how surprised she was by genuine “co-building” among the 7-member planning team and 270 Summit participants.

Here are some of the very intentional youth engagement methods that stand out. This uplifting, colorful 45-page report covers the pre-planning stage through concrete commitments as well as implementation.

Principles & Procedures

1. TAREGETED REPRESENTATION. Invite people, primarily between the ages of 16-24, who have lived experiences of government systems that have not worked for them. Seeking young people who will share their firsthand grievances is usually not a top priority.

2. RELIANCE ON COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS. Instead of an open call for individual applicants, Youthprise, Grip Tape and many other nonprofits across the country were key to recruitment. These youth-serving organizations know their constituencies.

3. PRE-PLANNING PREP. Youth organizations held online gatherings for youth participants to explain jargon, agency jurisdictions, youth development benchmarks and other Summit goals. These orientation sessions are particularly important for those who may not have “traditional leadership experience.”

4. CO-ARCHITECTS FROM THE GET-GO. Usually, adults dominate the design phase and ask a couple of young people to give feedback on a preliminary plan. Instead, an external team had nearly equal representation from the start, with four young people and three adults.

5. FREQUENT MEETINGS. The planning team met weekly—every Friday afternoon for five months—ensuring an accelerated decision-making process that also helps to get on the same page..

6. REGULAR ACCESS TO LEADERSHIP TEAM. Senior White House staff and representatives from the six agencies met monthly with the planning team. Often, there is limited substantive interaction between high level professionals and those involved with a youth project.

7. COMPENSATION. The planning team was paid for their time, and the 90 youth participants at the Summit received a “generous per diem” which covered travel expenses (including for adult allies if requested), and a clothing allowance. What to wear at official events like this can be stressful.

8. INCUBATOR SPACE. A separate area for young people allowed them to engage with their peers, grapple with issues, raise questions, and float ideas. This accommodation provides a safe zone, free from unintended judgment or intimidation by adults. A staffed wellness room was also available.

9. IMPOSTER PREVENTION. The importance and value of youth perspectives need to be emphasized repeatedly, but one subtle strategy deserves consideration. At this high-level Summit, nametags of participants and speakers did not include PhD, MSW or other honorifics. Avoiding business suits also was encouraged.

10. ATTENTION TO ATMOSPHERICS. An intergenerational team created a playlist. Poet laureates spoke throughout the Summit. A graphic facilitator captured concepts, language and priorities. An online meeting platform allowed all participants to communicate and network.

11. SETTING GROUND RULES. One Summit guideline stated that no federal policymakers could speak on stage without being in dialogue with young people. Co-facilitation can be uneven due to personality differences and public speaking experience, particularly between a 16-year-old learning about federal housing programs and a U.S. HUD expert. Plenty of time is necessary to build confidence and rapport.

12. CHANGING HABITS AND ATTITUDES. The planning team held a training for representatives of all participating agencies on the concept of adultism and power dynamics. Another unlearn and relearn training focused on communication and messaging including shifting the deficit-oriented narrative to youth experiences and capabilities

Working with young people in a different way strengthens the agencies, and moving forward, they’re going to continue to use their experience to shape their work. – Shital Shah, Senior Advisor of Strategic Partnerships at the Department of Education

Policy Outcomes

At the end of the Summit and six months later, here are a few of the actions taken but there are dozens more specific policies.

All six agencies committed to stop using “vulnerable” and “at-risk” youth in policies and program materials. A list was created to retire other terms such as “delinquent” and “neglected” youth.

U.S. Department of Labor pledged to hire young people in local, state, and federal government not only to share ideas but to raise awareness about the Workforce Recruitment Program.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Labor Department launched a pilot program to 1) reconsider zero-tolerance policies that hinder employment and 2) create policies that provide substance abuse resources for young people.

Youth are experts in their own lived experiences. When we are given agency, wellbeing, belonging, purpose, meaning, and leadership within our federal government to express our voices, we are empoowered to bring these values to our peers as well. – Sriha Srinivasan

This Summit was underwritten by the Fund for Adolescent Science Translation (FAST) that includes the Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Bezos Family Foundation, The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, The Ford Foundation, The Hemera Foundation, The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Hopelab, Pivotal Ventures, The Raikes Foundation, Spring Point Partners, The Seattle Foundation and The Stuart Foundation. FAST is dedicating $400K to support young leaders and organizations as a follow-up to this White House Summit.

The entire process of including young people at the federal level to this degree is unprecedented.

Please share your reactions and other examples of substantive and sustained youth engagement at the local, state, or federal level.

Resources

Cultivating Opportunities – Report about this “first-of-its-kind exchange” White House conference

Seek Common Ground – Nonprofit managing the Fund for Adolescent Science Translation (FAST) grants

Why Aren’t We Doing This! Collaborating with Minors in Major Ways – Shameless plug for the book I co-authored with 19-year-old Denise Webb

Credit: One of several graphic images generated at the Summit

The most eloquent and knowledgeable experts cannot compete with the likes of Denise Webb. Her wisdom shines in the book we co authored Why Aren’t We Doing This! Collaborating with Minors in Major Ways. Denise’s activism started at age 15 and five years later, she still is working part-time with a dozen other youth staff at the Partnership for Southern Equity in Atlanta.

Denise represents the next frontier of youth engagement where organizations go beyond focus groups and advisory councils. There is no substitute for ongoing substantive teamwork – especially those directly impacted – in deliberating together about policy solutions and also participating throughout the decision making process.

Raw reality combined with irrefutable statistics are on center stage when Denise Webb spoke to a huge audience at the 2024 Plenary Session: Advancing Whole Health hosted by the Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR).

Her words hold so much gravitas and deserve repeated reading. Here are several excerpts from her opening speech.

I am a statistic.
I am one of 500,000 people in Georgia who have lived in low-income spaces.
I am one of 700,000 people in Georgia who has severe asthma.
I am one of 36,000 youth who went through homelessness during K12 career.
I am one of the millions in Georgia who are also part of health and nutrition deserts.

…For my senior year of high school I spent it in a hotel. Living in that hotel eating sandwiches from charity buses, eating frozen food just to warm up, and staying in that small room with no transportation so I was basically stuck and my mental health hit so hard..I remember not wanting to have a future… I didn’t care about wheezing because I couldn’t afford medicine for my nebulizer. I realized that you cannot worry about your health if you cannot afford to fix it.

So I ask all of you, there are people in the community who don’t have PhDs, don’t have Masters degree, high school diploma or Bachelor’s and they are living the exact same issues that we are talking about. Today I urge you to find a Denise – not this Denise sitting on a stage in a suit – but the Denise living in the hotel, the Denise that didn’t want to go to school, and struggling. Think about what’s actually happening in your community and use your resources to help.

Here are a few reasons to embed people like Denise into your organization’s public policy work.. Included are page references to our book.

NEW CONSTITUENCIES REPRESENTED
Young people can mobilize their peers who usually are invisible and if invited, can direct their voices to the powers-that-be. Denise and I describe dozens of recruitment strategies (pp. 90-101). Also, youths can tap their community connections that may include aunts and other family members, faith leaders and neighborhood groups which strengthens the advocacy engine.

2. PIN DROP PHENOMENON
Young people possess outsize influence to capture the attention of decision makers. Denise is living proof how “lived experience” gives a human dimension to data that can be unforgettable. Unlike lobbyists and other professionals, young advocates often attract media coverage which in turn can pressure policy makers to take action.

3. RENEWED PROFESSIONAL PASSION
Our age-segregated society means most professionals, especially senior leaders, do not interact with young people as colleagues. Embedding a cohort of youths in the policy team can reenergize staff and add “joy” which can counter burnout (pp. 33-34)..

4. DEMOCRACY DROPOUT PREVENTION
Real world experiences such as advocating to a city council, school board, planning commission, etc. during the formative teenage years can make a lasting imprint. Collaborating with adults in an organization committed to inclusive and democratic practices holds the promise of lifelong civic engagement where it is the norm for those not old enough to vote to have a seat at the table.

Concrete Impacts

POLICY WIN: Having formal leadership roles for high school students on the Advocacy Committee and other Committees of the Rhode Island Civic Learning Coalition is credited with the victory to increase K-12 funding to $1 Million in FY 2022 (p. 27)..

POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE EXPERTS: “The experience of being in conversation with young people is truly changing the adults’ perspectives of their value to the movement and solidifying a greater commitment to it because they are hearing constantly about why it matters so much from young people.” – Arielle Jennings, Executive Director (p. 27)

POSITIVE IMPACT ON YOUTHS: “At the Rhode Island Civic Learning Coalition, I could share my opinion freely and we could have a conversation. It’s such an inspiration for youth when we are actually working with older people so wise who listened and worked as allies and as friends and as colleagues rather than sitting and waiting for our turn to speak.” – Athena Holloway (p. 83)

Follow Denise Webb on LinkdIN where you can also watch her presentation

Boost Your Advocacy Engine

My job as a community organizer and then as a reporter covering the US Congress are the roots of my dedication to civic participation, especially those more impacted and furthest from power. More recently I have two decades under my belt working with both young activists as well as nonprofits resulting in the passage of county ordinances, state and federal legislation. Check out my coaching services.

Category: Health

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