Policy On Purpose

How many people regularly attend their local city council meetings to provide their perspective on important local issues? Well, I know some 9th graders who will!

During my fellowship at Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG) I realized that local officials are more accessible than I thought, and local policies are just as important as national ones. While most of us get sucked in to the never ending news cycle about federal partisan politics, we often overlook the important policy decisions happening in our own backyard. The “Policy on Purpose” unit introduces students to the world of local politics and teaches them to critically evaluate the effectiveness, fairness, costs and consequences of local policies. The culminating project simulates the experiences that I have had at SVLG in policy research and coalition building and guides students to navigate the system of policy advocacy. Every student will engage in forming a policy committee, discuss strategy, complete a policy brief and bring their ideas to our local government or another community leader.