Youth Council Press Release

Youth Council Selection Committee Named

Panel Will Help Solicit Applicants for 15-Member Body That Will Focus On Cruising, Teen Pregnancy and Other Key Issues

A selection committee that will bring forth nominees for Milwaukee's first-ever youth council is in place and ready to move ahead with its groundbreaking work, the alderman who helped create the unique legislative body said today.

Ald. Joe Davis, Sr., the primary sponsor of the Common Council legislation that created the youth council, said the selection committee appointments were made by Mayor Tom Barrett and Common Council President Willie L. Hines, Jr. The selection committee members – three adults and two teenagers – are:

• Ramon Candelaria, adult, of the Latino Community Center (Mayor Barrett).
• Sarah Hinkfuss, teen, of the east side (Mayor Barrett).
• Brittany Nash, teen, of the west side (Ald. Hines).
• Steven Ray Robertson, adult, of the northwest side (Ald. Hines).
• ReDonna Rodgers, adult, of the northwest side (Ald. Hines).

Ald. Davis said the selection committee will soon meet with City Clerk Ron Leonhardt to review its charge and the structure of city government. He said the appointment of the committee fulfills – at least in part – his dream of getting youth more involved in civic affairs and helping to build city leaders of the future.

"I've been looking forward to this day because we've taken an important step toward empowering the youth of our community," said Ald. Davis.

"Those involved in this initiative will set a new course for what this city will become in the years and decades to come," Ald. Davis said.

The youth council, a representative city government body that will be comprised of 15 members ages 18 and under, was created on July 7 when the Common Council approved Ald. Davis's legislation. The youth council will assess and evaluate community needs and resources needed to improve conditions for young Milwaukeeans and promote wholesome youth activities in the city. The members of the youth council will have to meet eligibility requirements – including reaching high school status – and will be appointed to one-year terms by the Common Council. The youth council will be attached to the Office of the City Clerk and will operate through a working partnership with the Common Council and the Mayor.

The selection committee will set up the youth council to function as a legislative body, will establish its first set of rules and develop application guidelines for prospective youth council members. The youth council will have one representative from each of the 15 Common Council districts, and the Common Council will make the appointments after it receives the names of youth council nominees from the selection committee. The selection committee will disband after the appointments are made and its work is finished. The youth council will then select five of its own members to serve as a regular or "permanent" selection committee.

Common Council President Willie L. Hines, Jr. said he looks forward to monitoring the work of the selection committee and noted that it is going to be performing an important, groundbreaking role for the community. "Setting up a legislative body and making sure that it works the way it's supposed to is no small task," said Ald. Hines. "However, I am confident that the five (Selection Committee) members are more than up to the task of not only helping to create the youth council, but also in helping to identify top-shelf nominees who have the qualities necessary to be leaders."

Brutal beatings involving youths and sometimes violent disturbances this year involving young cruisers in the city has made the youth council initiative a timely one, said Ald. Davis, who is chair of the Common Council's Community and Economic Development Committee.

According to U.S. Census figures, in 2000 there were 46,688 children ages 10-14 living in the City of Milwaukee. In 2004 that makes up a sizable group looking for ways to spend their non-school and leisure time, Ald. Davis has said.

Approximately 10% of annual city Community Development Block Grant reprogramming dollars would be allocated to support the recommendations of the council for youth service activities and other objectives. All funding recommendations made by the youth council would have to be authorized by the Common Council, and the Common Council could reject any youth council decision by a majority vote.

A seven-member advisory committee, staffed by the Office of the City Clerk, will assist the youth council in its work and help coordinate all training for the council.

Contact Us

The Milwaukee Youth Council is staffed by employees of the office of the Milwaukee City Clerk. If you would like more information about the Youth Council, or are interested in becoming a member yourself, please use the contact information below. Please be advised, however, that application forms will probably not be available until the late Fall of 2004.