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Athens Recreation Advisory Board reopens member recruitment; board will check whether high‑schoolers may serve
Summary
The Athens Recreation Advisory Board reopened recruitment for one open seat, received four responses to date and set a Feb. 1 application deadline. Board members asked staff to confirm whether minors may serve and discussed alternatives such as a nonvoting youth participant or a separate youth advisory body.
The Athens Recreation Advisory Board on Jan. 16 reopened recruitment for one vacant seat and set a Feb. 1 deadline for applications, with the board planning to vet candidates and forward ranked recommendations to the mayor at the Feb. 20 meeting.
Board members said four people had applied in the roughly three weeks since the call went live. “Someone reached out to me and asked if we could have a high schooler as a member,” Emily, a board member, said during the meeting. Catherine, a staff member, said she will check with Monica Flowers about whether any city ordinance or state law would bar a person under 18 from serving.
The question matters to the board because members said they want to encourage youth engagement but must follow legal and administrative limits. If an applicant is ineligible to vote, board members discussed having the person serve as a nonvoting participant or creating a future youth advisory board to formally involve younger residents.
Board members agreed to keep the application period open through Feb. 1 so the board has time to review materials before its Feb. 20 meeting. Catherine said staff will compile the applicants and distribute them to board members before the February meeting so the advisory board can list preferences that will be forwarded to the mayor for appointment consideration.
The board also encouraged members to reshare the recruitment flyer on social media; Catherine said the call is posted on the department website and the Athens Community Center Facebook page. If an interested person cannot serve as a voting member, members said they could still encourage them to attend meetings as a nonvoting participant.
Next steps: staff will (1) check legal eligibility with Monica Flowers, (2) close recruitment Feb. 1, (3) distribute applicant materials to board members for review and ranking, and (4) forward recommendations to the mayor ahead of the Feb. 20 meeting, when the board expects to discuss finalist preferences.
