YVote Change Makers 2022-2023
Our Change Makers Institute is back for another year of civics & advocacy programs held on Tuesday evenings via Zoom and once-a-month Saturday Afternoons of Action in person around NYC! We invite you to check out topics and a few highlights from this year’s program below.
PS – Interested in joining next year? Applications go live in August! Follow us on social media @YVoteNY or subscribe to our monthly newsletter to be notified.
Change Maker Sessions
| Date | Themes | Key Goals |
| October 4th Check out the session here | Voting in the USA Voter Registration Barriers to Voting and Accessibility | Explore voter registration Discuss barriers to voting Gauge knowledge of civics and civic engagement across the US |
| November 1st | Identity and Politics Having Tough Conversations about Politics and Voting | Reconnect and continue to build skills, knowledge, and community Explore and experiment with how to tackle tough conversations about politics and voting Reflect on our identities and how they impact the way we interact with each other and experience the world. Learn more about the 2022 midterms, what’s at stake, and why it should matter to you |
| November 29th Check out the session here | Media Consumption & Sources Intro to Media Literacy Social Media and the News | To identify and distinguish between credible media sources To examine the components of what makes a source credible and the implications for elections and political coverage—and being civically informed and engaged |
| January 10th Check out the session here | Stereotypes & Narratives reflection Intro to Public Policy Exploring Community Issues | Understanding how policy is created Understanding how we, as young advocates, may play a role in advancing public policy Assessing how our lived experiences differ from our peers Positioning the implications of our similarities and differences through investigating issues faced in our communities |
| February 7th Check out the session here | NYC Youth Agenda Recommendations Personal Testimtony in a Political System | To encourage YVoters to think critically about community issues To engage with advocating for themselves and their communities |
| March 7th | Identifying Community Change Makers Research on Borough Issues | To explore data points relating to community needs and activism surrounding them To create conversation regarding resources available and ways to use them |
| April 4th Check out the session here | Identifying Issue-Based Power Players Types of Power & Use of Power | To develop an understanding of the different types of power To identify power players specifically related to key issue areas |
| May 2nd Check out the session here | The Art of Persuasion The Role of Influence in Enacting Change | To develop an understanding of the difference between power and influence To explore how to use influence to advocate on behalf of others |
| May 30th Check out the session here | Changemakers Personified: Building the Next Generation | To demonstrate knowledge of different forms of discrimination, bias, and systemic inequities, including implicit bias To reflect on and assess one’s own proximity to power, privilege and oppression To identify root causes of an issue (environmental racism in NYC, educational equity, mental health education in schools) |
Days of Action
In October, YVote Change Makers celebrated Vote Early Day with a Haunted House of Democracy at Lehman College in the Bronx. YVote youth led hundreds of Lehman students through interactive learning rooms on the “mad science” of voter suppression, scary low youth voting rate, and skeletons of civil society.
Every year, we bring YVote alumni back to join us for an end-of-year / holiday celebration! Current change makers and alumni had fun celebrating all that was accomplished in 2022 (like our first Democracy Camp! And a fantastic NYC Youth Agenda Policy Breakfast!) and thinking through their civic resolutions for the new year.
Many of our Change Makers sessions this year focused on the power of persuasive speaking, testimonials, and storytelling to enact change at and beyond the ballot box. These skills came in handy as our Change Makers created short films about democracy in February and March to enter into the Youth Collective Film Festival. We invite you to view the films yourself below!
In May, YVote youth took on the challenge of securing 5,000 votes in The People’s Money citywide participatory budgeting campaign. They heard directly from the NYC Civic Engagement Commission about the campaign and then created their own Get Out The Vote plans!
We ended a fantastic 2022-23 year of programming with our Senior Step Up Ceremony, honoring and celebrating all of the work our graduating seniors put into YVote/Next Gen and the many ways in which they helped us grow. We loved hearing reflections on what their time in these programs has meant to them and the lessons they’ll take with them in this new and exciting chapter of life!
