department of parks and
recreation
Authentic Youth Civic Engagement (AYCE)
The City of Greenville, in partnership with the United Way of Greenville County,
is embarking on an Authentic Youth Civic Engagement (AYCE) initiative for
Greenville youth, ages 13-19. A framework is being created that will offer
opportunities for middle and high school students to become engaged in every
facet of our community.
In March, 2009, the City of Greenville and United Way kicked off the Authentic
Youth Civic Engagement initiative with a celebration at the Carolina First
Center. Close to 100 local adults and youth attended the kickoff, and after the
opening session, attendees broke up into four teams: the School Team, the
Neighborhood Team, the City Team and the Community-based Organization Team. Each
team is comprised of both adults and youth, and will spend the next few months
working to determine what AYCE opportunities currently exist in the community,
where young people can make a positive contribution and what changes will be
needed to ensure success. In June, each team will submit a report and those
reports will be compiled to create an Authentic Youth Civic Engagement Plan,
which will be submitted to City Council in July or August.
There are four teams organized in the City of Greenville:
City Team
A team of 15 adults and 15 high school youth will work together to identify and
make recommendations for creating opportunities within city government where
young people can make the greatest contributions to increase the quality and
accessibility of services and supports that target youth and to have influence
on the decisions being made.
School Team
A team of 15 adults and 15 high school youth will work together to identify and
make recommendations for creating opportunities within the city’s public and
private schools where students can make the greatest contributions to enhance
the learning environment, improve scholastic possibilities and quality, increase
safety, and improve classroom success.
Neighborhood Team
A team of 15 adults and 15 high school youth will work together to identify and
make recommendations for creating opportunities within the city’s neighborhoods
where young people can make the greatest contributions to make them safer, more
supportive, and generally more youth friendly.
Community Based Organization Team
A team of 15 adults and 15 high school youth will work together to identify and
make recommendations for creating opportunities within the youth serving
organizations where young people can make the greatest contributions to increase
the quality and accessibility of their services, support, and opportunities.