Tag: civic learning

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.

1. 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.