Expressing support for the designation of February 2023 as "National Youth Leadership Month".

IV 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 171 Expressing support for the designation of February 2023 as ‘‘National Youth Leadership Month’’. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 27, 2023 Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin (for herself, Ms. MACE, and Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce RESOLUTION Expressing support for the designation of February 2023 as ‘‘National Youth Leadership Month’’. Whereas youth are children and adolescents as well as those making the transition into early adulthood; Whereas, while it is essential that we, as adults, care for our youth, it is also our responsibility to ensure that the youth are among today’s leaders and are well prepared to lead future generations; Whereas, as of 2020, 73,106,000 Americans were under 18 years of age, comprising 22.1 percent of the United States population; Whereas it is especially critical that youth voices are uplifted in policy conversations because despite the fact that youth do not have the right to vote in elections, each pol- VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR171.IH HR171 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 171 IH icy enacted by their representatives will have an effect on them; Whereas effective policymaking requires a clear and nuanced understanding of the problems and of the context within which policy solutions will take place; Whereas youth are the foremost experts in their own lived ex- periences; Whereas youth have been at the vanguard of every social movement; Whereas youth are capable of engaging in substantive and productive discussions of issues and as partners in the policymaking process; Whereas the nuanced perspectives that youth are able to offer based on their aforementioned experiences are critical to crafting effective policies that avoid unintended con- sequences; Whereas policies that impact youth are incomplete and insuf- ficient if youth are not authentically engaged in the pol- icymaking process; Whereas specifically youth who are or have been involved in the child welfare and youth justice systems have crucial perspectives about the functioning of those systems and how they impact youth and families; Whereas when youth are empowered to lead throughout their formative years, they develop a strong sense of identity and become engaged civic participants that take pride and ownership in their work and those that they lead; Whereas these benefits are especially potent for youth from communities that have been historically excluded from leadership roles, including youth of color, Native youth, VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR171.IH HR171 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 171 IH LGBTQ+ youth, youth from religious minorities, poor youth, and the estimated 391,000 youth in foster care on a given day; Whereas, in the context of child welfare, authentic youth en- gagement is an approach that prioritizes elevating youth to be leaders in shaping their lives and directing their fu- tures alongside the adults in their communities and the child welfare workforce and is recognized as best practice within the child welfare system; Whereas child welfare experts agree that implementing au- thentic youth engagement for the purposes of case plan- ning, court processes, and the implementation of youth advisory boards leads to better outcomes for youth within the child welfare system as well as positive systems changes overall; Whereas youth development experts agree that despite the benefits of youth leadership, the subject is critically understudied; Whereas conducting further empirical research on youth lead- ership would yield immediate application for policy- makers, educators, parents, and employers, and youths themselves; and Whereas we support designating February 2023 as ‘‘National Youth Leadership Month’’ to uplift current youth leaders and those doing the important work of supporting youth leadership: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports the designation of a ‘‘National 2 Youth Leadership Month’’; 3 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR171.IH HR171 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 171 IH (2) encourages Congress to implement policies 1 to elevate youth voices to lead, support youth leader- 2 ship development opportunities, and encourage addi- 3 tional research on youth leadership; 4 (3) honors the work of adults that prioritize 5 and cultivate youth leadership; and 6 (4) honors the dedication of youth leaders who 7 advocate for the interest of their generation and fu- 8 ture generations. 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR171.IH HR171 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS