An effort to increase teen engagement in Gonzales is succeeding, and spreading to neighboring cities

At least 33 states now involve students in education policymaking through formal advisory roles or positions on state boards, and these youth have helped spearhead changes, such as a Massachusetts rule requiring student feedback to be considered in the teacher evaluation process and a Washington bill creating school-based liaisons to coordinate homelessness services.

Through Youth Voice Youth Vote, nearly 800 young people in Portland took part in a participatory budgeting process to decide how to spend $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding. The winning projects, including a paid internship program, expanded access to menstrual products, and a job resource fair, are now in the process of being implemented.

The Appalachian Queer Youth Summit, West Virginia's only summer camp for LGBTQ2S+ teenagers, provides a welcoming venue for campers to explore their identities and connect with other queer youth, all while building skills in storytelling, advocacy, citizen lobbying, and knowing your rights. Participants have gone on to advocate for changes in their state, successfully driving efforts to ban conversion therapy at the municipal level, and have also formed a tight-knit community that extends beyond the camp grounds.

Indiana’s Hoosier Hall Pass program allows 16- and 17-year-olds to miss a day of school to pitch in as poll workers, helping to fill staffing shortages while also giving youth an up-close-and-personal look at the election process. In 2020, about 4.3 percent of poll workers in the state were under the age of 18.

More students than ever are now providing input on education policies through state boards and councils, with 33 states offering opportunities for student engagement in the policymaking process. Student representatives serving in these positions say the experience has bolstered their interest in politics and given them the chance to weigh in on important issues, and some have successfully lobbied for official voting rights on their boards.

Through the San Antonio Mayor's Youth Engagement Council, students network with municipal officials, conduct research, and complete community-based projects to help them develop policy proposals around issues such as the climate crisis. Participants have organized workshops and collected food and hygiene donations to support vulnerable residents and say serving on the council has provided them a venue to work on issues that are important to them.

Juvenile Hearing Boards in Rhode Island divert first-time youth offenders from traditional detention to community-based volunteers who assign restorative sanctions like community service and counseling, resulting in a recidivism rate of less than 10% compared to the state's overall 33% three-year recidivism rate.

At Philadelphia’s inaugural Civics Day competition, students from high schools across the city presented their work to address issues important to their community, from countering sexual assault to improving safety on public transit and preventing gun violence. The students were part of a pilot project by Generation Citizen designed to teach youth how to actively participate in political and civic life.

Ahead of Chicago's runoff municipal election, organizations such as GoodKids MadCity and Chicago Votes targeted youth voters with nontraditional events such as fashion shows and art installations, hosted youth-led candidate forums, and helped young residents get set up with IDs and driver's licenses needed for registration. Turnout among voters age 18 to 24 increased by 32 percent between the February election and the April runoff.

An elective course at Central Falls High School in Rhode Island allows students to research and propose improvement projects for their school, which are then voted on and implemented using earmarked funding for the program. The participatory budgeting process has helped revamp the school cafeteria, upgrade the library furniture, replace outdated bathroom mirrors, and more.