After two years of inactivity due to the pandemic, the Paso Robles Youth Commission is back, ready to enable teenagers and young adults to make a difference in the community.
Started in 1999, the commission started as a way to build a bridge between City Council and the youth of Paso Robles. City Recreation Services Manager Lynda Plescia said it began as a way to get youth involved in the community.
“We were following the goals established by the City Council to work to include young adults and have representation for young adults in our community and find a pathway for them to get involved in local government,” Plescia said. “We have a recreation services strategic plan, and the goals and objectives include inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility. And we felt that expanding the Youth Commission would help us work [toward] achieving these goals.”
In previous years, the Youth Commission only accepted high school students in the Paso Robles school district, but this year, it’s accepting applicants from those ages 14 to 21 who live in the 93446 ZIP code. The changes allow for students attending Cuesta College or Mission College Preparatory Catholic High School to weigh in on issues pertinent to teens in Paso Robles.
One thing that Plescia wants the Youth Commission to address is reviving the after-school teen center in Centennial Park.
“In order for it to really meet the needs of youth in our community, we want to hear from the youth in our community,” Plescia said.
The work doesn’t just stop with issues that impact teens. Plescia said that the Youth Commission will also weigh in on key issues that affect teens in the entire community, including climate change, water conservation, and new cannabis ordinances.
Teenage use of illegal substances is one thing that Paso High freshman Elijah Duran said he wanted to address as part of his application to be on the Youth Commission.
“The reason I am applying to be appointed to this advisory body is to be actively engaged with the Paso Robles Youth Commission and give a viewpoint from a young Latino adult,” Duran wrote in the application.
Sixteen people applied to be interviewed for the Youth Commission on Nov. 17, but Plescia said that only nine will be selected. The City Council selects applicants based on a variety of factors, from availability to attend meetings to relevant experience. For incoming Paso High junior Kalani Gaviola, she participates in extracurricular activities so she can impact a greater good.
“They all boil down to a desire to make the world a bit better, or more educated, or even more fair for all of us here, and I figure starting with Paso Robles, the community I’ve grown up in, is the best possible start I could ask for,” Gaviola wrote on her application.
While the selected applicants have already been notified, that doesn’t mean there won’t be more openings in the future. Three Youth Commissioners’ terms expire on June 30, 2023.
“Members of the Youth Commission benefit by working with staff and seeing how their voice makes a difference and how they can contribute to the evolution of their community and how it can meet the needs of youth as well as everyone in the community,” Plescia said. “What a valuable lesson to learn when you’re a young adult, [when] you may not think that your voice has much of an impact.” Δ
This article appears in Nov 24 – Dec 4, 2022.