“Youth Voices” is a partnership between the YMCA of Central MA and WCUW that allowed teens to develop and discuss topics such as systems change, racial equity, education, legal, risk and public policy all from a youth perspective. The program began in mid-July 2020 and ran through the end of August 2020 as part of the summer program that required social distancing protocols and new tactics to reach the teen population.

We recognized that providing civic engagement opportunities for “hands-on learning” that inspires volunteerism and service-learning throughout youth development is important, and infused the opportunity into different youth programs. In this space the teens were able to build a sense of community ownership as they discuss various topics – from environmental issues at summer camp, to gardens in our afterschool programs, gender equality to racial and systemic issues within their community. Identifying local issues and championing solutions can have positive long-term effects on children’s attitude towards community engagement.

Archived below are the stories of nine of the 77 unique Worcester teens who were exposed to this program.

CJ.

Dante.

Ethan.

Ezekiel.

Madisyn.

Melanie.

Natalia.

Savannah.

Yamira.