City of Aurora Youth Council met Oct. 9.
Here is the minutes provided by the council:
Members Present: Liam Fitzpatrick, Diana Gonzalez, Matt Leslie, Margarita Medina, Adam Pauley, Arleth Rodriguez, Mohini Shanker, Neha Tokala, Manal Zaman, Safa Zaman
City of Aurora staff present: Deanna Cross, Dr. Adrienne Holloway
1. Call to Order
Safa called the meeting to order at 4:35pm.
2. Roll Call
There were 10 members present at the meeting.
3. Approval of Minutes
Adam motioned to approve the minutes; Arleth seconded.
4. Approval of Agenda
Manal motioned to accept the agenda; Matt seconded.
5. Public Comment
There were no speakers present at the meeting.
6. Reports of Officers or Committees
The council debriefed on the success of the Youth Leadership Summit, outlining the various successes, things to improve, and how to move forward from here. Adam brought up that if the council wants to have this be an annual event, a new committee should be formed as soon as possible, maybe with a new chairperson.
Arleth led the council in recognizing and thanking Adam for his hard work.
7. Unfinished Business
Elections: Last meeting, the council neglected to elect someone as a Public Relations Liaison.
Adam nominated Neha; she accepted. Safa nominated Arleth; she accepted.
Neha talked about she is a new member to AYC, and involved in other school activities such as Youth and Government. She interned with Barbara Hernandez, where she learned how government works and how to spread news. She is also a part of Model UN and Rep. Kifowit’s Youth Advisory Council. She is active on social media, especially Twitter, and enjoys memes and relatable content
Arleth spoke about how this is her second year in AYC. She has gained a lot of PR experience recently, as her JROTC Lieutenant appointed her as her unit’s Public Affairs Officer. She facilitates and advertises events, emcees ROTC events, and helps to write a monthly newsletter. She is also the PR officer for her Junior Class Council, and is also active on social media,
The vote resulted in a tie!
The council decided to elect both Arleth and Neha as co-chairs. They will both be responsible for promoting and advertising AYC events, services, and miscellaneous things on various social medias.
TEDxYOUTH at IMSA: Dr. Holloway told the council the different benefits of different sponsorships. A sponsorship at:
$1000: 2 standard tickets, group mention, special recognition in flyers, logo on video and reel, mentions on website
$3000: all of the above + table at the venue, 2 VIP tickets, explicit mention at event, mentions on social media
$5000: all of the above + 4 VIP tickets, access to VIP dress rehearsal, and special access to marketing activities.
The event is on Saturday, November 16th.
The council did not foresee spending more than $1000 on a non-youth council event at this time, since we also have other AYC events that we want to use our $3000 budget for. That said, our fiscal year is the calendar year, so we can spend some money and have the rest roll over.
Adam motioned to sponsor the TEDxYOUTH event; Mohini seconded.
The council decided to contribute a $1000 sponsorship to the TEDxYOUTH event.
8. New Business
AYC was contacted by the Kane County Health Department to see if we would be interested in creating a policy proposal for tobacco control for a $5000 grant. Operation Snowball has received this grant in the past, and has used it to strengthen school policies regarding e-cigarettes. Other organizations have used these funds to help strengthen policies relating to smoke-free parks. The due date is October 11th, but the council will contact the board to see if an extension is possible.
Adam, Arleth, Matt, Liam, Manal, and Neha expressed interest in working on this. Safa appointed Adam as the committee chairperson.
The City of Aurora Diwali event is looking for volunteers. The event is on October 19th, and volunteers will be expected to help set up and clean up, or assist with the stage and dressing rooms.
Neha and Arleth expressed interest in volunteering.
Merchandise:
Adam spoke about how, during the first year of the Council, they had T-shirts and nametags, and how these helped identify AYC members and publicize them. Members expressed interest in business cards and stickers. Arleth brought up the idea of reusable water bottles with AYC logos on them. Adam remembered the T-shirts costing around $200 for the first-year council. Our current council has fewer members, so it is likely that we could get more merchandise.
The PR co-chairs were appointed to design merchandise for the AYC. They will return next meeting with designs and potential pricing for a logo, business cards, and shirts. Adam motioned to have the Council vote digitally on these designs so that a logo may be submitted to TEDxYOUTH by their deadline; Manal seconded.
Adam formed a committee for next year’s Youth Leadership Summit. Neha, Mohini, Liam, Arleth, and Safa expressed interest in joining. Neha was appointed chairperson.
Safa brought up the YouthTalks Forum, where AYC had various leaders come and interface with youth about issues concerning students. The last Forum was about school safety. Liam, Manal, Matt, Diana, Safa, Neha, and Margarita expressed interest in forming a committee. Matt was appointed chairperson.
9. Announcements
Adam registered to vote!
10. Adjournment
Mohini motioned to adjourn the meeting at 5:34pm; Matt seconded.
https://www.aurora-il.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_10092019-2012
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