Minnesota YMCA Youth in Government
$150,000 each year is for grants to the Minnesota Civic Education Coalition: Kids Voting St. Paul, the Learning Law and Democracy Foundation, and YMCA Youth in Government to conduct civics education programs for the civic and cultural development of Minnesota youth. Civics education is the study of constitutional principles and the democratic foundation of our national, state, and local institutions and the study of political processes and structures of government, grounded in the under-standing of constitutional government under the rule of law.
- We will have identified at least 25 new communities - that will result in 10 new groups that participate in Model Assembly or Model United Nations
- Updated and improved website and updated social media presence - to help students and adults statewide know how to participate in YIG programs
- New printed program collateral for use in new communities - to hand out in classroom visits, etc., to build student interest
- Model Assembly and Model United Nations videos produced and posted to YouTube for use by statewide audiences
- Program app built and used for conferences - to help students and advisors participate in conference experiences
- Build and implement 24-hour "YIG Sampler" during conferences - to help prospective students and adults understand YIG more deeply and build excitement for building new groups
During the grant period, we met or exceeded our program goals:
• YIG staff identified, reached out, and connected with teachers and program coordinators from 69 different organizations within Minnesota, including but not limited to eleven 4-H groups in southwestern Minnesota; independent YMCAs in Marshall and St. Cloud; and schools within the Minneapolis Public School District. This outreach resulted in 15 new groups enrolling in the 2017/18 and 2018/19 program year, including Carlton, Cologne, Dilworth, Faribault, Grand Marais, Grand Rapids, Maple Grove, Minneapolis, Owatonna, Pine City, St. Anthony Village, and Virginia, Minnesota.
• Website and social media improvements are a continuous process; staff continue to increase access to resources for students and adults to access, especially so those who are new and/or unfamiliar with YIG programming can more easily identify opportunities.
• We completed Model Assembly and Model UN printed materials.
• We completed two short promotional videos for Model UN and Model Assembly; these videos have posted on YouTube to show audiences across the state what Youth in Government programs are and how they work.
• We completed YAPP, a digital program app, for each conference. Participants now have access to a digital conference book and resources that increase engagement with the program.
• Both 2017-2018 YIG conferences had a 24 hour “YIG Sampler.” Model Assembly served two groups (two adults, six students) and Model UN served three groups (four adults, five students).