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New! "Steps to Building a Youth Council" Click HERE [pdf] 
Are you just starting a youth council? Or does your youth council need a fresh start? There are many options to consider when starting or restructuring your youth council. There is no one right way to organize a youth council--it all depends on the needs of the centre and the preferences of the youth. A youth council is all about having youth input into how the youth centre is run, so when it comes down to it, it is the youth themselves who will decide how they want to structure their council. Here are some things to consider if you are thinking about how to organize your youth council:
Purpose
What is the purpose of your youth council? What are the needs in your community? How can a youth council respond to those needs? How will the youth participate in planning activities for the youth centre? How will youth participate in making decisions in the friendship centre? What will be the responsibility of the youth council?
Membership Roles and Responsibilities
How will youth become members? Will they be elected? Will anyone be able to drop-in? How many members do you want?
Will you have positions (like President, Vice President, Secretary, etc.) on your youth council? If so, what will those positions be? What will the responsibilities of each position be? If you don't have positions, will you have any committees? What is the role and responsibility of the adult mentor or youth worker?
Policy
Will members be required to attend all meetings? What happens if they can't make it? What happens if they rarely come? What happens if members behave badly during meetings? Will you have rules about how members should treat each other? Will you make a code of conduct?
Meeting format
Will you have an agenda for the meeting? If so, who will make it? The youth worker or the youth? Will the agenda be made in advance, or will the youth make it up at the beginning of the meeting? Will someone take notes? Will someone chair or facilitate the meeting? If so, who? Will there be a time for socializing?
Decision Making
When it is time to make a decision, how will it be made? Will the youth council vote? Or will they do consensus decision making-where everyone discusses the issue until they come up with a solution that every single member agrees with?
Privileges
What special privileges will the youth council members get? Will they get an honorarium? Will they receive food at meetings ? Will they get to go on field trips? Will they be publicly thanked for their work?
Culture
How do you want to incorporate culture into your youth council? Will you ask an elder to sit in on meetings and act as an advisor? Will you include an opening and closing prayer for the meetings? Will you use talking circles?
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