Young people in Salinas will soon have more opportunities to get involved in their government.

Celia Jiménez here, thinking about the new opportunities teens in Salinas will have to get involved in their community and city government. 

On Oct. 22, the city council unanimously voted to approve a Salinas Youth Council Pilot Program through July of next year. 

In August, high school students who participated in Salinas’ internship program—Daisy Guerrero, Natalie Vasquez, Juan Camacho and Fatima Castaneda—recommended the council create a youth council. Soledad, Gonzales and Greenfield have active youth councils that have provided recommendations and solutions which have had a positive impact in their communities.

Salinas previously had a youth commission, but it hasn’t been active the past five years. Councilmember Anthony Rocha participated in one of the last internship cohorts. 

“It was a real great opportunity to engage young people in our governance process,” Rocha said. 

The new youth council aims to have a greater impact than its predecessor. 

“The pilot program will allow the City to work with youth to establish a sustainable program that provides youth leadership development and civic engagement opportunities and will align the Youth Councilmember terms with the school year,” a city staff report reads. 

During her first year of teaching, Councilmember Carla Viviana González said she noted the positive impact the Gonzales Youth Council had on one of her students. 

“Not only was she part of the council, not only were they holding meetings, but they were actually passing policy,” González said. 

City Manager René Mendez is familiar with the positive impacts of a youth council. He was instrumental in the creation of the GYC when he was the city manager of Gonzales. In 2022, thanks to the GYC’s work, Gonzales, a small rural city in South Monterey County, was in the national spotlight when it won the 2022 Ruth Vreeland Award for Engaging Youth in City Government from the Helen Putnam Awards. 

The council will have representatives from all Salinas high schools and several roles and positions where students can explore new skills. 

The city manager’s office will support the youth council. Before the pilot program ends, it will come back to the city council for consideration. 

Last year, I experienced first-hand the confidence young people in Gonzales had while addressing their city council and how being involved in their communities helped them see their city in a more positive light. 

I can’t wait to see how this pilot program will impact teens in Salinas and how they could help shape the city’s future.