Lakeland forms Youth Council, seeks high school students to give input on city priorities
LAKELAND — Lakeland officials are seeking up to 15 teens to form a Youth Council this fall.
City commissioners voted unanimously Monday to form a Youth Council of high school students starting in September. The aim of the council would be to allow students to better understand and participate in municipal government, while possibly bringing new ideas to the table.
"The goal is to see what the youth in our city feel about our city services and what we provide," Commissioner Stephanie Madden said.
The Youth Council will be tasked with looking into what issues concern students and teens in the community, doing research and studying the concerns, then making possible suggestions to the commission for action.
The council will be open to high school students who meet two main requirements: be a city resident and enrolled in a public or private high school in grades nine to 12.
Restaurant inspections This Polk restaurant was temporarily closed by inspectors for the 4th time this year
What's needed in Downtown West? Lakeland is planning a second public meeting
Downtown intersections Lakeland to convert 5 more traffic lights to four-way stops; says crashes are down
A specific application is being drafted by city staff that will be made available through the city and the area's high schools to interested students. The application will ask students to answer a few questions, including why they want to participate.
Each of Lakeland's commissioners and the mayor will nominate two students to be members of the student council. Anyone may nominate a third individual in order to form the 15-member group, desired to help break voting ties.
Those who apply will be reviewed by the city's Municipal Boards and Committees committee, before a final list goes before the commission for its approval.
Kelly Koos, city clerk, said applications will likely be due by late August. Selected Youth Council members will tentatively be sworn in mid-September, Madden said. Each member will serve a two-year term, and 12th-graders can be appointed for a term that extends beyond graduation.
The council will then go through the process of selecting a chair person to preside over its meetings and a vice chair to run meetings in their absence. Meetings will be held once a month, Koos said. Madden will be the first commissioner to serve as a liaison between city officials and the committee.
Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on Twitter @SaraWalshFl.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Lakeland seeks high school students for newly formed Youth Council
