The city’s first Youth Council will give high school students a chance to learn how local government works, serve their community and, perhaps most importantly, be heard.
There was something fitting about the person sitting across from Pooler Mayor Karen Williams asking the questions.
Christopher Benton is 14 years old.
And the conversation taking place inside Pooler City Hall was about why people his age should have a voice in what happens in their city.
“When I was a youth, my concerns were different from what they are now,” Williams told Christopher during an interview for The Coastal Buzz’s Youth Buzz. “Times have changed. Technology has changed.”
That changing world is part of the thinking behind Pooler’s new Youth Council, the first program of its kind for the city and an opportunity for high school students to get an up-close look at local government while giving city leaders something in return: their perspective.
“Our youth are our future,” Williams said. “As adults, we don’t always know what the current concerns are for youth.”
So Pooler is asking them.
Starting Small and Learning Together
The first Pooler Youth Council will be open to students in grades nine through 12.
Williams said the city plans to begin with approximately five to eight students, intentionally keeping the first group small while everyone learns what works.
“We can get our feet wet and, you know, make the small mistakes you need to make and then learn from them,” she said. “And so we can grow next year.”
Students will go through a blind application process that includes an essay and recommendations before members are selected.
Once chosen, they won’t simply receive a title.
They’ll get to see how their city works.
Council members will learn about bylaws and how the Youth Council is organized. They’ll attend Pooler City Council meetings, participate in community service projects and volunteer at city events.
They’ll also learn some lessons that stretch beyond government.
The students will participate in fundraising, including raising money connected with a potential opportunity to travel to the Capitol during Savannah-Chatham Day next year.
Williams said that responsibility is intentional.
The Youth Council members will have their own Pooler Youth Council shirts, but she also wants students to learn some of the financial responsibility that comes with accomplishing a goal.
Hearing What Adults May Be Missing
There is another part of the Youth Council that can’t necessarily be taught through bylaws or City Council meetings.
Listening.
Williams acknowledged something adults can easily forget: the experience of being a teenager changes from generation to generation.
The issues young people encounter today aren’t necessarily the issues their parents or city leaders encountered at the same age.
“What they’re feeling, what they would like to see, what they don’t want to see,” Williams said. “It’s very important to listen to them and get their perspective.”
That means the Youth Council has the potential to become a two-way classroom.
Students can learn from city leaders about government, service, responsibility and leadership.
City leaders can learn from students about a generation experiencing Pooler from a perspective adults no longer have.
Williams hopes that creates what she described as “a cohesive relationship” between city government and the young people in the community.
And perhaps that’s where the biggest opportunity lies.
A teenager who walks into a City Council meeting today may become a community leader years from now.
A student volunteering at a city event may discover an interest in public service.
Another may simply discover that an adult in leadership is willing to hear what they have to say.
Nobody knows where those experiences might lead.
But first, students have to apply.
For any young person who’s interested but wondering whether they should take that first step, Williams offered a philosophy she uses herself.
“If you never ask, the answer is always no,” she said. “So why not apply?”
Applications are available through the City of Pooler’s website and Facebook page, and Williams said they will also be available through schools.
For a handful of Pooler students, filling out one of those applications could lead to a seat in a room they might not have imagined themselves sitting in yet.
And this time, the adults are asking them to speak.
WHY THIS MATTERS:
Young people hear a lot about being “the leaders of tomorrow.”
Pooler’s new Youth Council gives some of them an opportunity to participate today.
What caught our attention isn’t simply that students will learn about local government. It’s that city leaders are acknowledging they don’t always know what young people are experiencing—and they’re creating a way to listen.
Youth Buzz exists for a similar reason. We believe young people have questions worth asking, ideas worth hearing and stories worth telling.
Sometimes giving the next generation a voice starts with something pretty simple:
Ne sure to go to Pooler-GA.gov/YouthCouncil for more information!
The editorial team behind The Coastal Buzz, spotlighting the People, Places & Possibilities shaping Metro Savannah, the Coastal Empire & Lowcountry. Founded by Chris & Sandy Benton.