Council members team up with students in new city Youth Council

More than a decade ago, Ritchie Torres heeded a high school coach’s advice by joining a Coro leadership training program. He was exposed to a realm beyond his life in public housing through the initiative, which placed him in an internship at a deputy mayor’s office and piqued his interest in a political career.

Now the youngest member of the New York City Council, Torres has teamed up with the Coro organization again to initiate a New York City Youth Council comprised of one youth from each lawmaker’s district.

“It dramatically expanded my horizon and gave me insight into the workings of city government,” Torres said of his experience with Coro and an ensuing internship with the deputy mayor’s office of economic development and rebuilding. “And I knew right then and there that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. The Council, I think, is pioneering a new model of civic and political mentoring for legislative bodies elsewhere.”

The Youth Council’s 49 members – one from each district with a sitting lawmaker – began a three-week training program earlier this month focused on improving personal and group leadership skills, gaining familiarity with the legislative and financial work of the City Council and learning survey, data collection and observation techniques. When the Council resumes its more robust schedule this fall, the junior members will spend time shadowing their representatives. They will also attend Youth Council meetings twice a month and routine Saturday sessions to reflect on their work and share what they have learned with one another.

All junior members will join one of four yet-to-be assigned City Council committees, too, according to Coro New York Executive Director Scott Millstein. “The education committee, for example, the young people could get an assignment from the committee saying, ‘We are looking at the school discipline code. We’d like a series of recommendations from you about changes that would help improve the discipline code,’” Millstein said.

Beyond developing the high school students’ skills and encouraging civic engagement, Millstein said the initiative seeks to make adults more amenable to soliciting youth input. He said the city invests billions of dollars in programs for minors, which means it stands to gain a lot from interacting with them. The latest city budget earmarked nearly $350,000 for the Youth Council, which includes a $900 stipend for junior members throughout the program. Torres sponsored the budget request.

City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito said she is proud of the investment. “The NYC Youth Council elevates the voices of young people across our city in decision making and policy, while also offering them a hands-on experience in how local government operates,” she said in a statement. “It’s our hope to have a pipeline of young leadership in this city so that in the years and decades to come, the next generation of New Yorkers have the tools to lead us all into the future.”

Junior members Melissa Queliz, who is from Councilman Brad Lander’s district, and Keslie Joseph, from Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland’s district, said they want to further immerse themselves in the legislative process and tap peers for feedback before offering specific recommendations.

“I didn’t realize that we had as much power as we did just by being citizens,” Queliz said. “On the third day we learned about the hierarchy or the order in which the city government works. I thought that the mayor was at the top of the chain, but it was actually the people.”