STAFF REPORT
DATE: October 24, 2023
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Marisa Garcia , Parks , Recreation , and Community Services Director VIA: Diego Cevallos, Assistant Director – Parks, Recreation and Community Services
BY: Jenny Griffin, Recreation Supervisor
SUBJECT: Appointment of Members to the Youth Board for the 2023-24 School Year
RECOMMENDATION
Appoint students to serve a one-year term on the Youth Board based on school recommendations and submitted applications.
BACKGROUND
The major objectives of the Youth Board are to increase communication between youth and City government; provide a means by which young people can actively participate in government; organize community fundraisers ; and provide input and planning for programs that will benefit youth in the community. The following is an excerpt from Burbank Municipal Code (BMC) Section 2-1-416 governing the Youth Board:
The Youth Board shall have the following powers and duties:
1. To represent the interests of local youth in community affairs.
2. To represent the City in matters of interest to youth in the community.
3. To assist in helping other youth in the community to understand and appreciate local government.
4. To obtain interpretations for local youth on City ordinances, rules and regulations which affect them.
5. To encourage local youth to actively participate in community affairs and matters of concern to the City.
6. To conduct studies and investigations in the general field of youth and community interest and to communicate its findings and recommendations to the Council.
2 7. To encourage coordination of effort among community institutions and organizations that focus on youth problems and needs.
8. To advise and assist the Parks and Recreation Board on issues affecting the youth in the community.
According to BMC Section 2-1-416, the Youth Board is to be comprised of 17 members.
A representative is selected by each high school and middle school within Burbank.
School representatives include both public and parochial schools in the City. The remaining seven positions are d esignated as At -Large. All appointments are for a one - year term, with all members beginning and ending their annual terms simultaneously.
DISCUSSION
For high school and middle school positions, schools were provided the parameters for appointment and asked to select a student representative to serve a one-year term. This year, e very eligible school responded and submitted a nominee . All applications for school vacancies are attached for Council review (Attachment 1).
For the At -Large positions, there were 18 applications submitted (Attachment 2). In- person interviews were conducted by Department staff , and s even (7) applicants are recommended for appointment to the Youth Board based on their relevant experience, leadership skills, interest in school and local government , and ideas for engaging youth in the community.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact related to this report.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommends that Council appoint ten (10) recommended school representatives and seven (7) qualified At-Large applicants to the Youth Board. At-Large applicants staff recommends are noted with an asterisk (*) below.
Middle School and High School Appointments
Dolores Huerta Middle School Pagorn Prachasaisoradej John Muir Middle School Alisa Avetisyan
Luther Burbank Middle School Caitlin Wells
St. Finbar Middle School Vincent Millunzi
St. Francis Xavier Middle School Catalina Jaramillo St. Robert Bellarmine Middle School Victoria Valenzuela Burbank High School Natalie Garibyan
John Burroughs High School Jesiah Licardo
Monterey High School Isabella Najaryan
Providence High School Sophia Duarte
3 At-Large Applicants
Audrey Arutyunyan*
Alexis Bell*
Shruthi Castro
Emily Chamichyan
Abbas Darwich*
Rachel Dias
Janice Kim
Heesung Lee
Calibrooke Myers
Neha Ramesh*
Zia Saenz
Nare Sheroyan
Emily Tarverdyan
Edna Yeghnanyan*
Amy Yoo*
Aiden Yoon
Lia Zargarian
Anastasia Zubkoff*
*Recommended Applicants
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – School Representative Nominations
Attachment 2 – At-Large Nominations