For the last few months, students from Mann UCLA Community School and UCLA Community School engaged with researchers from the Institute for Educational Leadership to identify and illuminate best practices for meaningful engagement of young people in community schools and to recognize youth voice as a community asset that can help advance more equitable school systems. Along with students from four other schools across the country, Mann and UCLA Community School students highlighted how their community schools build the capacity of students to feel personal ownership for self, school, and community. Their work is featured in a new guide–Youth Voice in Community Schools: A Practical Guide to Advance Community School Strategies for Youth Voice, Engagement, and Leadership–that demonstrates that now is the time to engage the next generation of leaders to design school systems, services, and programs that are responsive to their needs. The guide is designed for use by community schools practitioners who are working to advance their student engagement efforts. The strategies also offer considerations for youth-led work and youth-serving professionals working in communities and with schools.
