CQC scholarships: A practical tool for engaging youth in city governance

By AWC staff

Ii your city needs to find inspiration on how to engage youth in city governance, look no further than this year’s AWC Center for Quality Communities (CQC) scholarship recipients: Tanya Bhandari (City of Bothell), Jorge Gaytan Garcia (City of Connell), and Indiana Hilmes (City of Selah). AWC members had the honor of hearing these three young leaders speak at the 2024 Annual Conference, and many attended their student-led panel on the value of getting youth involved in city governance. Their resumés are formidable—their passion for serving their communities, admirable. And in every scholarship cycle, there are so many more young people doing amazing things in their cities than the scholarship fund is able to assist.

Each year, AWC asks its members to nominate local student leaders and to help support their college aspirations through the CQC scholarship fund. The fund is supported by donations from municipal leaders and partners, and the number of students and amount of the scholarship has varied based on resources. What hasn’t changed is the expression of gratitude from the students. It’s worth noting that, while these young people always appreciate the financial help, they often express their deepest gratitude for the less-touted gifts of city involvement, including: access to a network of interested and supportive professional mentors; recommendations for college; an understanding of how cities function and how to engage on issues they care about; and the opportunity to have their ideas and concerns heard—and to serve as a voice for their friends and neighbors.

The time is ripe for local leaders to invite their city’s youth—creative, intelligent, energetic, persuasive, and caring people in their own right—to explore their local political landscape and get involved. Young people care deeply about their communities and are willing to step into the fray, work for change, and share their generational expertise. All they need is an invitation to take a seat at the table.

How willing are they to get involved? Consider these excerpts from the bios of our CQC scholars:

Tanya Bhandari hosted a school voter registration drive with the League of Women Voters and Secretary of State and has been an active participant in Bothell’s Civic Saturday events. She serves on her school district’s Youth Advisory Board and is the longest-serving volunteer on the Teen Board of Bothell Library. Tanya also serves on the local Model United Nations Executive Board and was recognized with an award for best position paper at the MIT Model United Nations Conference.

Jorge Gaytan Garcia is active in public health and wellness as an agricultural tractor driver and a volunteer at local food banks, sorting and packaging food. As a youth lobbyist with the Washington Bus and Progreso (Latino Progress) group, he advocates for positive change at the state level. Jorge’s extracurricular activities range from competing on his school’s Knowledge Bowl, math, and robotics teams to playing varsity tennis. He takes pride in being recognized as a Hispanic Academic Achiever for nine consecutive years and serving as part of the Junior Class Honor Guard. Jorge has also participated in community service and leadership development with the San Juan Diego Mission Youth Group, where he has served as a bilingual teaching assistant and translator.

Indiana Hilmes is a teen journalist for the Yakima Herald-Republic, where she shares the perspectives of youth with readers across the Yakima Valley. Indiana also works as an intern for the Washington State Board of Education, where she uses the stories she hears from students and professionals from all over the state to help improve Washington’s education system. She is a student representative to the Selah School Board, co-chair of the Yakima Valley Community Foundation Youth Council, and National Student Advisory Council Member for the Work2BeWell mental health and wellness program.

The AWC CQC’s annual call for scholars is an opportunity for your city to engage with local youth and identify those leaders you want to put forward for scholarships or perhaps even recruit to get involved in city initiatives. Whether it’s developing an internship program, forming a youth council, or finding ways to inspire young people to pursue careers in local government, the need to include our youth in planning for our cities’ futures—for their own futures—has never been more imperative.

Creating relationships with today’s young people isn’t just important for building a future workforce that will support and care about cities. As the government that’s closest to the people, local government can inspire and attract community members across a diversity of ages, interests, and experiences—building lifelong habits of civic engagement. Cities have a unique opportunity to send a message to their youth not just that they are valued, but that their dedication to cities can have real and meaningful positive impacts.

For more information: wacities.org/cqc-home/scholarships