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Youth council announces small grants, volunteer fairs and teen training opportunities
Summary
At the meeting, the council and partners announced two small grants, a teen volunteer/job fair, a teen mental-health first-aid course, a student poll-worker program and donation drives; speakers provided contacts and deadlines.
The Jacksonville Youth Council used its meeting to highlight grants and several forthcoming opportunities for teens, including volunteer programs, a job fair and mental health training.
The Harmony board’s recent awards were announced: $600 was awarded to a North Side High School student project to create an in-school hygiene station, and $875 was awarded to Aspire Reaching Beyond the Obvious for a teen empowerment day. "Because of your generosity, we're able to have a day that's all about helping us and other teens in the community," said Destiny Hill of Aspire as she thanked the Harmony board for the funding.
Organizers highlighted volunteer and job opportunities. The council announced an annual teen volunteer/job fair scheduled for April 18 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Jacksonville Commons Recreation Center (100 Recreation Lane), where teens can connect with volunteer organizations and local employers. A speaker said students can obtain volunteer hours at Onzo Memorial Hospital (transcript spelling) and provided Greg Spicer as the contact; signups were noted as closing soon.
Christina Hoffman Becker, who identified herself as Katherine Becker’s mother and an election specialist with the board of elections, encouraged students who will be 17 by election day to serve as paid student election assistants (poll workers). She said training will begin in September and emphasized that the positions offer pay rather than volunteer hours: "You get training, you get poll worker pay," she said, and offered to share more information with interested students.
A teen mental-health-first-aid training was announced for Monday, April 13 at 159 Cheney Avenue; registration is through the YMCA, dinner will be provided, and the course consists of three 90-minute Monday sessions that lead to teen mental-health-first-aid certification. The council also announced a used-book collection for White Oak High School and elementary classrooms and an AP environmental science electronics fundraiser collecting laptops and small electronics through June.
Why it matters: These announcements provide concrete ways for students to earn service hours, gain paid work experience, and access mental health training and supports. Several items include sign-up deadlines and contacts listed during the meeting.
Next steps: Interested students were directed to contact the listed staff and volunteers for details and to watch council communications for updates and final schedules.
