Taking Your Seat at the Table: Carter Beardsley on Elevating Student Voice in Education Artwork

Youth Voice Amplified

Join hosts Gennessa Fisher and Brian Johnson for this youth-led and youth-focused monthly interview series as they talk with young people about their life experiences with homelessness, foster care, disabilities, teen parenting, and more. Each conversation will uncover stories of hope and strength from youth storytellers who will share the best ways we can support youth in similar situations. If you want to know how to do better for youth or simply be inspired, this is your show! Every youth has a story to tell. Are you ready to listen?

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Youth Voice Amplified

Taking Your Seat at the Table: Carter Beardsley on Elevating Student Voice in Education

August 07, 2024 • Carter Beardsley • Season 1 • Episode 20

Carter Beardsley, is not just a student—he's a changemaker! As the Region 8 President of the California Association of Student Councils, Chairman of the Kern Literacy Council's Youth Literacy Committee, and a Bakersfield Youth Commissioner, Carter is at the forefront of uplifting student voices in his school and the community.

Join us as Carter shares his personal journey into leadership, fueled by a passion for equity and student advocacy. He opens up about the challenges he faced, the motivations that drive him, and the accomplishments he's most proud of, including spearheading innovative literacy initiatives. Through his story, Carter offers invaluable insights into how schools can genuinely engage youth voices and create inclusive environments where all students are empowered to lead.

This episode is packed with Carter's wisdom, passion, and actionable advice for students, educators, and community leaders seeking to foster authentic youth involvement in decision-making processes. Tune in to learn how you can be part of the movement to amplify youth voices and drive meaningful change.

Find helpful resources mentioned in this podcast episode.

Also mentioned in the episode:
1. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson
2. California Association of Student Councils
3. Youth Commission
4. Kern Literacy Council

Connect with Youth Voice Amplified

If you would like to ask us a question, recommend a topic, or suggest a guest, please email us at youthvoiceamplified@gmail.com.

Credits:

Producers: Brian Johnson, Gennessa Fisher, Kim Silva and Allyson Baptiste
Production Partners: Kern Education Television Network, the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office and Liam Silva
Theme Song: “Beatitude” by Mountaineer

💬 Have thoughts on this episode? Text us and share your take!

00:00:00 Speaker 2

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed on youth voice amplified are those of the hosts and the guests and do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of the current county Superintendent Schools Office. Any content provided by our guests are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, school organization, company, individual Or anyone or anything.

00:00:22 Speaker 1

Youth voice amplified covers a wide range of topics that could be upsetting to some listeners. Content warning for each episode, and links to resources can be found in this episode show note.

00:00:31 Speaker 1

For the purposes of maintaining confidentiality, names and some identifiable characteristics of our storytellers have been changed, but their voices and their stories are real.

00:00:41 Speaker 2

When young people share their stories, they can change the world. But some youth voices still go unheard. Join me, janessa Fisher.

00:00:49 Speaker 1

And me, Brian Johnson, for this youth LED monthly interview series as Young people tell their untold stories of experiences with homelessness, foster care disabilities, teen parenting and more.

00:00:59 Speaker 2

Each conversation will uncover stories of hope strength from our youth storytellers who want to share the best ways that we can all support youth in similar situations as theirs.

00:01:08 Speaker 2

If you want to know how to do better for youth or simply just be inspired, this is your show. Every youth has a story to tell.

00:01:15 Speaker 1

Are you ready to listen?

00:01:19 Speaker 2

Hey everyone and welcome back to your voice, amplified the podcast where every youth is heard and every voice matters. I'm your host, janessa.

00:01:25 Speaker 1

And I'm Brian. I hope you're all staying cool in this extreme heat this summer.

00:01:30 Speaker 2

Tis true, the heat hits differently here in Kern County.

00:01:33 Speaker 2

Our next guest is a youth advocate in our community and is also enduring this horrible heat with us.

00:01:38 Speaker 1

He's a lifelong resident of Kern County and he strives to involve himself in bettering the community. He also serves as the region eight president of the California Association of Student Councils, where he represents 400,000 students of Kern, Kings, Inyo and.

00:01:53 Speaker 1

Tulare counties as sold.

00:01:54 Speaker 1

Of our regions, ASP president.

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This role entails taking issues we see and making Bill proposals to fix them and presenting those bills to our state legislation and the Board of Education. He is also extremely passionate about literacy and is proud to be the first chairman of the current Literacy Youth Council Literacy Committee.

00:02:13 Speaker 2

Also serves as the Bakersfield Youth Commissioner and sits on various political boards across Kern County. Please welcome the Amazing Carter Beardsley.

00:02:23 Speaker 2

Welcome, Carter, and thank you so much for being a guest on our show. You're so happy to have you on. My friends will scored today. Don't worry about it. But usually on our show, so the listeners can get to know you a little better. We have an ice breaker and you chose what are three words you would use to describe yourself.

00:02:40 Speaker 3

Oh, OK, that's a good one. Got to think about this one for a second.

00:02:44 Speaker 3

Hopeful hype and happy the three HP's that make my world go round.

00:02:50 Speaker 2

I love that I'm such a hype man.

00:02:52 Speaker 1

I love the three H's. That's that's pretty good. That's pretty good. What does youth voice mean to you?

00:02:56 Speaker 3

To me, I think that youth voice is really inviting the future into being the present. I think that I say a lot that someday it's going to be myself and my peers who.

00:03:07 Speaker 3

00:03:08 Speaker 3

At the front of the classroom teaching. Or are the doctor at your check up or sitting behind the day instead of school board meeting or anything like that?

00:03:17 Speaker 3

And so youth voice is really saying we as adults and as the present of today, we want to make sure that your guys's adjustment into filling our roles in society is the most effective, simple and best process for you. And we want to make sure that you get everything out of it so that when you do.

00:03:37 Speaker 3

Takeover we we know that everything's in good hands.

00:03:41 Speaker 3

As you're well equipped and we can keep moving society forward.

00:03:47 Speaker 2

That is such a hopeful to start this off. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and what led you into your leadership roles in your school and your community?

00:03:56 Speaker 3

Sure. So I am a student, I I'm the proud son of two educators. My mom teaches elementary school. My dad teaches adult education. So very different ends of the education spectrum there. But I got to see a very large view of what goes on.

00:04:16 Speaker 3

It behind the scenes at a school.

00:04:19 Speaker 3

And I think that my passion for leadership specifically came from growing up in a community like Kern County, where togetherness is a very important factor in how we run things. Specifically, I went to school in Delano for a number of years and being from a small town where everyone knew each other.

00:04:37 Speaker 3

And I think that from that I realized that you can't wait for someone else to be the change. You have to be the change yourself, and a community can really help.

00:04:48 Speaker 3

You do that by uplifting you while you uplift others, and that's really what leadership is. So I think that taking those principles that I grew up with is how I got.

00:04:56 Speaker 2

Into leadership. What motivated you to start advocating for equity and student voice?

00:05:01 Speaker 3

I grew up with my mom saying this quote. I forget who originally said it, but it was we should always strive to build a longer table and not a taller fence. And I think that.

00:05:14 Speaker 3

When we look at a phrase like that, what I see is that there's already a table built, and it's not about, you know, making a seat at the table. It's about taking your seat at the table. And I think that what really motivated me to really push for more equity it specifically in student voices.

00:05:33 Speaker 3

Recognizing that as young people, we do have our seat at the table and it's just time that we sit down and we.

00:05:39 Speaker 3

Start enjoying our meal because we have things to say and it's time that we're heard.

00:05:44 Speaker 1

Was there a particular moment or experience that sparked your passion for student advocacy?

00:05:50 Speaker 3

Yeah, so after the COVID pandemic, you know, we had had two years where everything was just, there was nothing to do. We were all so bored and.

00:05:59 Speaker 3

I I was about to enter high school and I really wanted to be able to really get involved in the community a lot more. I mentioned that I was a principal. I always grew up with. I also always dreamed of being a public official someday. That was just A Little Dream of mine. And so I really wanted to be able to act on that. And I think that.

00:06:20 Speaker 3

By joining the Youth Commission, it really offered the opportunity for me to start using that voice and I think.

00:06:26 Speaker 3

00:06:27 Speaker 3

That was definitely an experience that really motivated me and said there this is possible and it is possible for me to make a difference in my community.

00:06:38 Speaker 1

For our fans listening, how did you get started with the Youth Commission and the California Association of Student Councils?

00:06:44 Speaker 3

OK, so for the Youth Commission, I think that this is the most.

00:06:49 Speaker 3

Gen. Z way that I could have found out about it, but I was scrolling on TikTok and I found someone from.

00:06:56 Speaker 3

Oh, I want to say it was like somewhere in Northern California talking about all of these accolades that helped him get into Stanford. And one of the things he mentioned was a youth council. And I had never considered the idea before that we might have one of those locally. And in fact, I the the very first idea I had was.

00:07:16 Speaker 3

How can I get this started?

00:07:19 Speaker 3

But I googled it.

00:07:20 Speaker 3

And we actually had one and it was the most convenient timing. It was like I I found that TikTok that was completely unrelated, like two weeks after the Youth Commission had posted this article about seeking new recruits. So it was absolutely perfect. And so I got involved with that and the youth Commission was.

00:07:41 Speaker 3

A huge driving force in me being able to get involved in other things because.

00:07:46 Speaker 3

It kind of expanded my horizons to different aspects of our city and that expanding my horizons to different aspects of our county, state, nationally and through that journey, I was able to connect to some nonprofits that I was Super, Super, Super excited to work for specifically.

00:08:07 Speaker 3

I was on the got the dot leadership board for a nonprofit called J's Legacy Super Amazing Experience and kind of that introduction into the nonprofit world was really awesome. And so combining nonprofit and advocacy.

00:08:22 Speaker 3

I found cask or the California Association of Student Councils, and I applied. I was so excited and and I joined on as a regional Vice President, which meant that region, the region that I represent, is called region eight. We serve current kings in until.

00:08:42 Speaker 3

The counties and we kind of just serve as a platform for students to really uplift their leadership and.

00:08:48 Speaker 3

Advocacy abilities couple a couple months into my term as Vice president, I ended up becoming the region president and that has been great ever since. It's allowed me to travel up and down California meeting tons of new students and see all different perspectives and really just continue into the leadership and advocacy.

00:09:09 Speaker 3

Enhancement that we strive for.

00:09:10 Speaker 1

Does that mean there's other reasons that you guys serve as well?

00:09:13 Speaker 3

We have 12 up and down California. We are statewide. We were founded by this is our little advertisement. We were founded by the California Department of Education.

00:09:22 Speaker 3

So our goal is that we want to serve every student in California and so we do have regions up and down the state, which I love because like I said, it really gives us an opportunity to connect with people all across California really great to learn from each other.

00:09:39 Speaker 2

That sounds like a really cool is. So for you. Is it like a? Is it like a club? Is it like a a like a youth LED thing?

00:09:47 Speaker 3

We are completely student run and student.

00:09:49 Speaker 3

LED we are, we're nonprofit, founded by the California Department of Education, and we have adult advisories, of course. But yeah, I I like to think of us as the.

00:10:03 Speaker 3

Student Council or ASP for the state, we we have a couple different conferences that we put on every single year that again our student running student led to regionally that I get to host direct put on and.

00:10:18 Speaker 3

Construct, so those are really exciting. And then we have some where we get to present to the State Board of Education or the Senate and Assembly Joint Committee on Education. We've had I think it's over 70 bills that students have constructed, made themselves proposed, have actually been turned into law and policy that we see today.

00:10:35 Speaker 2

00:10:37 Speaker 3

It's really exciting.

00:10:38 Speaker 2

Are there any challenges you faced?

00:10:40 Speaker 3

A challenge that I consistently face is that I'm often the youngest person in the room, and I think that that can be a really difficult thing.

00:10:48 Speaker 3

Because you know, there's sometimes where people will look at the youngest person in a room and think that I'm uneducated about what I'm talking about, that I shouldn't be there, and that maybe that I'm there as kind of a token piece to.

00:11:02 Speaker 3

00:11:03 Speaker 3

Be that young person in a room and that that can be really challenging when it is something that I've dedicated a lot of my time.

00:11:09 Speaker 3

To better understanding and learning and that I do have a legitimate, you know, knowledge base of and that I'm, I'm there not to be.

00:11:18 Speaker 3

A token young person, but I'm there to be a colleague or a peer and really help communally make that change that we're all seeking. And I think that the best way to overcome that is by realizing that being a young person doesn't have to be a weakness. It can be simply a unique perspective. And by really looking through that.

00:11:38 Speaker 3

Lens and saying don't don't look at this as something that should set us back. Look at me being young as.

00:11:48 Speaker 3

Here's a perspective of this situation or this aspect of life that you may not have been able to understand, that I can provide.

00:11:55 Speaker 1

For you, how does it make you feel when you notice that you're the youngest person in the world?

00:12:00 Speaker 3

I think I feel a lot of pride. I mean it, it feels really good because like I mentioned, the unique perspective, you know, I come from 2 educators, so I am all about learning and I'm all about teaching. I think that we can all learn from each.

00:12:15 Speaker 3

Better, and I think that being the youngest person in the room means two things. It means that I can provide this perspective to these people that they may not have heard before. It also means that there's a lot of people who have a lot more experience than me and a lot more knowledge than me that can help me learn. And there's a lot that I can learn from them.

00:12:35 Speaker 3

And that only pushes us all.

00:12:37 Speaker 2

Forward. How did these experiences contribute to your growth as an advocate for student voice?

00:12:41 Speaker 3

Well, I think that originally I would find myself to be, you know, the only student in a room full of people who were.

00:12:49 Speaker 3

Just graduated college or well into their career, retired and it was very nerve wracking and very.

00:12:56 Speaker 3

Intimidating because?

00:12:59 Speaker 3

You know, again, with the stigma that can come behind being a young person and being seen as just a token, it's hard to break through those barriers and really in a way, stand up for yourself and say no should listen to what I have to say. And I think that the way that I was able to navigate that situation is.

00:13:20 Speaker 3

Again, by just kind of continuing to show up, faking it till you make it, even if.

00:13:25 Speaker 3

00:13:26 Speaker 3

00:13:27 Speaker 3

No, a shaky voice is a better voice than no voice, so just continuing to show up and speaking is how I ended up navigating through that.

00:13:37 Speaker 2

Did you often feel like this imposter syndrome?

00:13:40 Speaker 3

Always, always. There are so many times even today. Like it, there's so many times where it just feels like when when you're the only student in a room or you're, you know, it can feel a lot.

00:13:51 Speaker 3

00:13:53 Speaker 3

If no one else is here, then.

00:13:56 Speaker 3

Maybe I don't deserve to be here.

00:13:58 Speaker 3

00:13:59 Speaker 3

You know, impostor syndrome is just our own little internal enemy that keeps helping us strive for greater things.

00:14:08 Speaker 1

Do you think that feeling will ever go away?

00:14:11 Speaker 3

I hope it doesn't. I think it keeps. I think it keeps you humble. I think that I definitely hope it doesn't ever go away.

00:14:17 Speaker 3

As you know, as hard as greater heights can be to achieve, they can all go away in a second. So taking a lot of pride in I think you should, you should be very proud of the work you do. I think that not seeing it as something that could go away very quickly is dangerous. And I think that.

00:14:37 Speaker 3

Imposter syndrome helps keep us level and realize that hard work pays off. But.

00:14:44 Speaker 3

To always keep A level head on things.

00:14:47 Speaker 2

You have such a wise head on your shoulders and I just, I really enjoy talking. You just right now and I think that this goes back to what you just said was like making a longer table. So I mean, if nobody makes a seat for us and think that you are the perfect person to make that seat and you show up and you show out every time.

00:14:54 Speaker 3

00:15:08 Speaker 2

Hey there, amazing listeners. Before we continue, we want to take a moment to recognize all the young people out there who have triumphed over adversity. You know who.

00:15:15 Speaker 1

You are voice Amplify podcast is all about celebrating the strength and resilience of young people like you. We believe your experiences can inspire and empower others who might be facing similar challenges.

00:15:25 Speaker 2

So if you have a story to tell and want to be a guest on our show.

00:15:28 Speaker 2

Don't hesitate to get in touch with us. You can find us on Instagram at youth voice amplified.

00:15:32 Speaker 2

Cast or drop us an e-mail in the youth voice amplified at Gmail dot.

00:15:37 Speaker 1

Com together. Let's amplify your voice and share the power of your journey. Remember, your voice matters and your story can change lives. We can't wait to hear from you and share your remarkable story with the world. Thank you for being a part of our youth voice amplified community. Now let's get back to.

00:15:47 Speaker 2

Thank you for being a part of our youth voice amplified community.

00:15:52 Speaker 1

00:15:53 Speaker 2

Can you share some of the accomplishments you're most proud of?

00:15:57 Speaker 3

00:15:59 Speaker 3

The accomplishments that I'm most proud.

00:16:00 Speaker 3

00:16:01 Speaker 3

I've been very blessed to work with the local nonprofit called the Current Literacy Council that has a mission of improving literacy rates across our county. For those of the listeners listening in who don't know, California ranks consistently.

00:16:20 Speaker 3

Near the lowest in terms of literacy across the entire nation are the most populated, but we have some of the lowest literacy rates and some of the places that that is most prevalent is actually in Kern County, where this year we were on a good uphill.

00:16:39 Speaker 3

Rise. But this year we finally broke past half the students reaching state standards for ELA before it was about 48% who were reaching that. Which meant more than half of students were not.

00:16:52 Speaker 3

So I got to work with the Community Council on spearheading an initiative to get book thinning machines into schools, and we were able to secure one at my former elementary and middle school. And it is a vending machine that provides books to students completely for free, if they.

00:17:11 Speaker 3

00:17:13 Speaker 3

And because that was such a hit, we started a Youth literacy committee that I get to be the chairman of and we get to just.

00:17:20 Speaker 3

Continue uplifting student voice, specifically in an area that is really needed in our community. And again, it's just bringing the youth voice seat to a table of something that affects youth. So it I think I'm really proud that I was Able To do that.

00:17:41 Speaker 3

Of course, that was a huge collaborative effort for the Community Council, taking a chance on me. I'm pretty pretty grateful that that happened.

00:17:49 Speaker 1

I think the book vending machine is a cool thing I've never heard of one until now, so it's like a machine that just shoots books. Like if they want a book kind of gives it to them.

00:17:57 Speaker 3

Yeah. The students. Yeah. The students get a token. They can get it from their teachers if they are improving in their academics, they get tokens if they show.

00:18:08 Speaker 3

One thing that the schools are doing is that.

00:18:11 Speaker 3

If they show up to school every day for a week, they get a token and then they get to go to the library and they get to put a token in. And one thing that I really strived for is I wanted these books to be very appealing to the students. I think that part of the reason that we might struggle in literacy is because in.

00:18:30 Speaker 3

The digital age that we live in, if there's not something that's super enticing about a book students might be less likely to pick it up and read it. So I wanted to make sure that there were both, that the students were interested in, so we.

00:18:43 Speaker 3

Have everything from books that were written by authors that also wrote books that the kids was reading class with their teachers. So they have that author recognization classic books that they might have already heard famous books like diary of a Wimpy Kid, which I love and and also books that the students can see themselves in like.

00:19:03 Speaker 3

Folks that have.

00:19:06 Speaker 3

Students with disabilities as the main character or books that detail other cultures, and what I'm really proud of is there's books that are written in both English and Spanish so that students who may be learning English or want to learn Spanish are able to do so through those books.

00:19:26 Speaker 2

You have to give yourself credit. You did it. It was a collaborative effort. But they took a chance on you because they saw something in you because you brought something big to the table.

00:19:35 Speaker 3

Well, I appreciate that.

00:19:37 Speaker 2

You're so very welcome also.

00:19:38 Speaker 2

What is your favorite book?

00:19:40 Speaker 3

Oh, OK, I love this question. I actually have a friend who any chance she gets, she always asks this question. What's one book or movie that everyone should watch? And I didn't have an answer for a long time, but I finally do. And it's called Tuesdays with Maury.

00:20:00 Speaker 3

I'm blanking on the authors name. I know his name is Mitch, but I forget his last name and it's. I mean, it's a phenomenal book. It's about a professor who is on his deathbed to put it blank, but he was a sociology professor, so he dedicated his whole career to talking about how humans work and life and.

00:20:18 Speaker 3

Now he's as he describes it, kind of in this, in between between life and death. And so one of his former students comes and just basically interviews him and says now that you're at the end of the rope, what are some life lessons that we should all be aware of?

00:20:34 Speaker 3

And it's just such an interesting perspective on life that I think.

00:20:38 Speaker 3

Everybody could benefit from reading.

00:20:40 Speaker 2

Based on your extensive experience, how well do you think schools are doing in authentically engaging youth voice today?

00:20:48 Speaker 3

I think the schools are definitely improving. I think that when we look at, you know, schools maybe 30-40 years ago where students really didn't have much of a seat at the table aside from their student councils and planning dress up days. I think that we've made a lot of headway. I think that.

00:21:07 Speaker 3

Now that we have things like school districts, student board members, which is actually a task student, made proposal.

00:21:16 Speaker 3

We really invite students to kind of share their two cents. You know, I sit on the El CAP Advisory Board for the current high school district and that I think that the El CAP can be a very, very complex thing. But when it comes to spending funds on enhancing education, who better to have at the table?

00:21:37 Speaker 3

Been a student so it's been really amazing to be able to.

00:21:41 Speaker 3

Share my thoughts on things like that and.

00:21:45 Speaker 3

00:21:47 Speaker 3

You know, I think that those are good examples of how we really have been improving recently. And I think that we're only on the uphill climb. I think that as we continue to introduce student voice into things, I think students are going to use their voice to gain even more input, so.

00:22:05 Speaker 2

Have you seen a lot of different changes and improvements since you started your work in advocacy?

00:22:11 Speaker 3

For sure, I think that I think social media has been like such an amazing like.

00:22:17 Speaker 3

Factor in that as well. I think that because we're able to use our voice and kind of make this.

00:22:25 Speaker 3

Change. But we're also able to post about it and kind of share it with our friends and get them involved in the process. It definitely just kind of spreads it and it really opens the door for so many more people, definitely like posting on like Instagram and things, but also LinkedIn as a favorite of mine, but.

00:22:45 Speaker 3

Yeah, I think that just being able to post about things and like.

00:22:49 Speaker 3

The more widespread that this information can be, I think that has definitely brought a lot of change specifically to increasing student voice.

00:22:59 Speaker 1

So it's like a tool for wearing this.

00:23:00 Speaker 1

00:23:01 Speaker 3

00:23:02 Speaker 1

Why do you think youth voice still isn't listened to at?

00:23:04 Speaker 1

00:23:05 Speaker 3

I think that the extent to which student voices listen to is.

00:23:10 Speaker 3

Really, within the comfort zone of a lot of school or education professionals, I should say I think that there's a structure for how education has been for a long time. And so when we talk about bringing students to have an ear on certain things and speak about it, I think that the limiting factor.

00:23:30 Speaker 3

For some students, is that you know, the schools still at the end of the day have the final say and not that that's a bad thing at all. But I think that it just has to do with comfort zones and some.

00:23:43 Speaker 3

You know, schools may feel that it's.

00:23:46 Speaker 3

Safer to just kind of keep things the way that they are and have the people who have have this expertise. So they say in in these fields to really take the reins and not that they don't. But I also think that there is a specific expertise that comes from actually living it and it's that lived experience that is really crucial.

00:24:06 Speaker 3

So I think an example of this might be something as simple as you know, maybe being on a student council and you have to plan a dress up day and you all think that there is an idea that seems really, really funny and that a lot of people would like.

00:24:22 Speaker 3

And one of the administrators might really dig deep and think that there's something that could be taken the wrong way there, but we don't think it would. As a student body, we think that this is something that people would really engage in. And when our mission is to promote school spirit and getting people involved, you have to meet students where they're at.

00:24:43 Speaker 3

You know the dress up days that were popular 30 years ago. They're not going to fly now, so moving beyond just the decade stay or the dress is your favorite genre day and you know, moving into dress up as your favorite TikTok trend or your favorite meme or things like that.

00:25:01 Speaker 3

But I think that we see limitations in the sense that some people may.

00:25:06 Speaker 3

Think that? Well, let's put a halt on that. I think that we know what's best. So we're going to overlook that idea. Whereas the students are trying to provide this very valuable input into what would work for them because again, that's how student voice is when, especially in the school, it's about the education for the students and making sure that the students are having.

00:25:26 Speaker 3

A well thought out proper environment that's best for them. And so by listening to what we have to say.

00:25:33 Speaker 3

About that, we can kind of gain that mutual understanding of how to best serve us and how we can best learn from you. It can be discouraging. I think that if a student comes up to you and says I want to have ice cream for lunch every day, that's not necessarily feasible, but you shouldn't shoot it down by saying that's impossible. You should instead say.

00:25:55 Speaker 3

Let me look into that and see what we can do about it. You may not know exactly why you can't have ice cream for school for lunch every day. You definitely know you can't. But if you go do some research on it and you report back to the student that it has to do.

00:26:08 Speaker 3

With certain health code related things that are state guidelines that we have to follow or something like that. And you say that to the student, what it shows is that you took the time to really listen and you made an effort and you wanted to be able to work together and sometimes you can't always reach that end result and that's OK.

00:26:28 Speaker 3

But it's better to put in.

00:26:29 Speaker 3

That effort. So I think that it's harmful to just shoot things down because it kind of tells the student that their ideas don't matter and that there's no hope. And how are we going to grow into a more hopeful society that feels like they can conquer the world if we're telling them they can't?

00:26:44 Speaker 2

Who are the students that are often overlooked in youth voice efforts and why is it important to have a variety of voices?

00:26:51 Speaker 3

I think that the students that are often overlooked.

00:26:54 Speaker 3

In student advocacy and student voice efforts, are the students who don't necessarily bring themselves to uplifting their voice. I think oftentimes we rely on students to come forward and present themselves to be the student leaders and.

00:27:12 Speaker 3

Be the change, but then we get a very specific group of students where you know it's it's just the same typical ASP students. I think that oftentimes the.

00:27:26 Speaker 3

Students who don't always speak up the loudest are often overlooked, and that can include, you know, the girl who wins at her county art show and her voice on why improving art curriculum in schools is important, or the student athlete who isn't the most vocal on why.

00:27:46 Speaker 3

Having that outlet of sports is so important, or the band student on why, you know, having that musical ability and having a space to.

00:27:53 Speaker 3

Really appreciate that on campus can be so beneficial to continuing learning academically, but also just in life in general. And I think that those groups of students are often overlooked. And I think that the best way to.

00:28:11 Speaker 3

Really change that is by.

00:28:14 Speaker 3

Meeting the students where they're.

00:28:15 Speaker 3

At you know, I think that.

00:28:17 Speaker 3

A lot of times.

00:28:19 Speaker 3

People in positions of authority can look like these distant figures, but when we, you know, look at it. Like I said, we're we have this mutual goal of a positive education and that means that as a student and a principal or student and teacher or whatever, a student and a staff member on a school.

00:28:36 Speaker 3

It should not be looked at as a hierarchy. It should be looked at as being peers and colleagues and working towards the same goal. So I think just meeting students.

00:28:46 Speaker 3

Where they're at.

00:28:46 Speaker 1

Previously you mentioned tokenism and adultism. Can you share your experiences with these concepts?

00:28:51 Speaker 3

For sure. You know, I mentioned being the youngest person in a room a lot.

00:28:55 Speaker 3

And in those instances, you know there's a lot of times where I will go up to someone and I'll have this.

00:29:03 Speaker 3

Idea that I'm really, really excited about and I'm excited to kind of collaborate on it and going back to the concept of being peers rather than that hierarchy, I'm excited to find ways we can work together and it the conversation ends up being kind of a little pat on the back. Keep dreaming.

00:29:22 Speaker 3

You're going to do great things someday, kiddo. And it sucks cuz it's like, well, I'd like to do great things now and you can really help be the catalyst in that. You know, I think that.

00:29:35 Speaker 3

It goes back to the mutualistic idea that sometimes adults have to give youth that platform, and when we have that platform, we can do great things. But it is up to, you know, the adults right now who are in charge to really just open that platform for us and so.

00:29:55 Speaker 3

I've had a lot of experiences where, you know, like I said, I've I've tried to kind of step up to a platform that not yet been open for me and that it was unfortunate. And I think that the flip side of that is that is the adults who can drive the change instead of making it so that there's barriers that young people have to fight through.

00:30:16 Speaker 3

Just don't build the barriers, you know open. Keep the space open and allow for good dialogue, because I think that.

00:30:24 Speaker 3

You know, with social media and so many more ways of just being able to transmit information between one another.

00:30:32 Speaker 3

Young people are able to learn so much more than we would have been able to.

00:30:38 Speaker 3

Again, like 30-40 years ago because it's just at our fingertips. So I think we know a lot more than we're typically given credit for. So I think it's important that we're listened to.

00:30:50 Speaker 2

Why do you believe it's important to close the feedback loop and ensure that students are informed about actions taken in response to their feedback?

00:30:58 Speaker 3

Well, I I think that when we say we value youth voice and you know, going back to the tokenism words.

00:31:08 Speaker 3

Mean nothing without action to back it up and so.

00:31:12 Speaker 3

To say we care about what young people think, and we want to include students in this in the decision making process and things like that. And then you give students that platform to speak.

00:31:25 Speaker 3

And then you do nothing with it. I think that not only is that.

00:31:29 Speaker 3

Kind of degrading to the students that makes them feel under appreciated and undervalued and what they think. It also really leaves out the opportunity for adults to learn. I think that.

00:31:41 Speaker 3

Sometimes when we have this like mental hierarchy of, well, I'm older than you. So I know more. That's not always true. I think that we're constant learners and again, we can always, always, always be learning from each other. Each person has such a unique and different story and different perspective on things that.

00:32:00 Speaker 3

That hearing their reasoning behind things and kind of seeing the root of what they're saying, there's a lot to learn from that. And so when we close the feedback loop, it means taking the time to see. Why do you feel that way? Why? Why do you want this to happen and kind of diving more into it? And so from that?

00:32:20 Speaker 3

You may see that your.

00:32:23 Speaker 3

Presumption on what the answer should be isn't actually how you feel on it. You might also see that there's other factors that we need to look at into other things that may not have been previously considered, but closing the feedback loop really just means instead of seeing it as a difference between adult and youth.

00:32:42 Speaker 3

It's seeing human, to human and just kind of trying to read each other's stories and.

00:32:48 Speaker 3

From that, make an even bigger one, so pretty much bringing everyone to that, even playing field and all your perspectives matter. Yeah, I think that, you know, having different levels of knowledge doesn't mean that you have the exact same knowledge. You know, we again, I can always learn from other people.

00:33:08 Speaker 3

Just as they can learn from me.

00:33:11 Speaker 1

How has actively participating in youth force initiatives impacting your personal growth and self-confidence?

00:33:16 Speaker 3

Well, it has really shown me that.

00:33:19 Speaker 3

You know, I I think that the the best way to describe it is that that concept of us being human to human instead of that hierarchy, that mental hierarchy of course is what has been followed for a long, long time. And so being at the bottom of that pyramid as a young person compared to the adults.

00:33:40 Speaker 3

And the principles on campus and things like.

00:33:43 Speaker 3

I think that really engaging in student voice has shown that it's not there, you know, we're we all can be on the same playing field and.

00:33:52 Speaker 3

It's really contributed to my personal growth because.

00:33:57 Speaker 3

I haven't been afraid to explore.

00:34:00 Speaker 3

New ideas or continue learning on something or.

00:34:04 Speaker 3

Try to act on an idea and be a force of change because I thought that I was too young or I wouldn't be able to. It allowed me to look at it as.

00:34:14 Speaker 3

If I'm not able to do it, it's because I didn't try or because there are other factors that I'm going to learn along the way that.

00:34:21 Speaker 3

00:34:22 Speaker 3

To future instances, but I think that regardless, having that opportunity to.

00:34:29 Speaker 3

Act on student voice initiatives. It's just it's really shown me that, you know, the possibility to make change is there and it's not impossible and it's we're all capable of doing great things and our age does not have to be a limiting.

00:34:43 Speaker 2

In your opinion, what is one way that schools can create a safe space where students can feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and concerns?

00:34:49 Speaker 3

This is an idea that I will pitch far and wide as long as I can, and it is for principals, staff, teachers, whoever it is to go have lunch with the students and.

00:35:03 Speaker 3

In literal action, I think it's a great idea. It's also worthy of being.

00:35:09 Speaker 3

You know, taken as the concept, how can you expect to improve cafeteria food or the?

00:35:18 Speaker 3

What the cafeteria looks like, or anything like that if you're not there, sitting as a student in that cafeteria, you can't. You can talk to students. And I think the student voice is very important. I think student perspective.

00:35:33 Speaker 3

Is kind of different and also very important, and I think that that's something that you know, you can make a very valuable effort in having for yourself. And it kind of just means trying to meet the students where they're at again and seeing what life is like for them. And if you were in their shoes, what would you want to change? And then?

00:35:53 Speaker 3

Taking your position of power and making that change.

00:35:57 Speaker 2

A very simple but effective way.

00:35:59 Speaker 3

Yeah. And also school food can be really good. So I recommend going to try it sometime.

00:36:05 Speaker 1

How can schools better support student ideas and suggests?

00:36:09 Speaker 3

By closing the feedback loop by again just taking what students say and showing that conscious effort to make things happen, I talked about the fact that when you listen to student voice and you actually try to make change come out of it, you might learn that what you thought was.

00:36:28 Speaker 3

00:36:29 Speaker 3

There's actually so much more that can be possible out of it, and I think that by listening to student voice again, it just goes back to us all being constant learners. And I think that that's going to be the best way for student feedback to really feel like it's being valued by the students, is by trying to always, always, always just make that conscious effort to tell the students.

00:36:49 Speaker 3

That I'm listening to what you're saying and I'm trying. It's not about being perfect. It's about just putting in the effort to to try, you know, it's about showing the students that.

00:37:01 Speaker 3

What matters to you matters to me. You know, I'm it's not. It's not about being here for the check that comes in at the beginning of the month or anything like that. It's about making a difference in your life and making sure that when you look back on your education, you had a positive time. So help me help you.

00:37:19 Speaker 2

From your experience, what does a truly supportive adult partnership look like?

00:37:24 Speaker 3

Truly supportive adult partnership is one that again sees the student as another human instead of someone who's below the.

00:37:35 Speaker 3

It's also someone who.

00:37:37 Speaker 3

00:37:39 Speaker 3

To learn as much as they are to teach, I think that specifically looking in the school setting, you know.

00:37:47 Speaker 3

A teacher's job is to teach, but.

00:37:51 Speaker 3

It might mean saying.

00:37:54 Speaker 3

I see that the class isn't really understanding this topic that well.

00:38:00 Speaker 3

How can I best help you guys learn and and things like that? I think that that's a very supportive adult student relationship because it's just consistently striving for better and seeing how it is that.

00:38:15 Speaker 3

You know the both of you can continue growing and continue to strive towards that goal that you guys have whatever it is and it's it's just seeing the value that can come from each other. It it also means that on the student perspective recognizing that the teacher has.

00:38:32 Speaker 3

A lot of valuable knowledge, or the counselor or the administrator and and seeing everything that they have. And I I don't think it can be understated that while student voice is important, it's also really important that we continue to learn from those who came before us and helped blaze the trail. Just student voice is important and we provide that unique perspective but.

00:38:52 Speaker 3

We can also form our perspectives and learn new things from the people who came before us, so it really is a mutual thing, as important as it is for teachers to listen to us, it's also really.

00:39:02 Speaker 3

That we make a conscious effort to always try to learn from the administrators and stuff that that we interact with.

00:39:10 Speaker 2

What would you say to educators and adults who think that doing stuff the way we've always done it is the way it should be?

00:39:17 Speaker 3

We've never had good things and good change come out of staying the same forever. Society evolves whether we like.

00:39:25 Speaker 3

00:39:26 Speaker 3

When the Internet came around, we had to evaluate how does cheating look in the classroom and is this something that should be feared or can we?

00:39:34 Speaker 3

00:39:35 Speaker 3

A tool most of my work is online now.

00:39:37 Speaker 3

And I get to learn virtually. And that was just one example of ways that.

00:39:42 Speaker 3

You know, change was able to be a positive thing. And so I think.

00:39:47 Speaker 3

00:39:48 Speaker 3

Sometimes things it might be easier to just keep things the way that they've always been, but society evolves whether we like it.

00:39:57 Speaker 3

00:39:57 Speaker 3

Not the sun comes up on a new day, whether we like it or not, and so it's important that we adjust with it because otherwise.

00:40:06 Speaker 3

We're going to result in being ineffective and that's the last thing we want.

00:40:10 Speaker 1

What advice would you give your fellow students who want to advocate for their voices to be heard in their schools?

00:40:16 Speaker 3

Speak up. Speak up. Speak up. The biggest thing that I could say to my fellow students who want to make a difference on their campus is recognizing that your voice is important. What you have to say does matter and.

00:40:31 Speaker 3

There will be people who are willing to listen for every person that shuts you down, there's probably three more who do want to hear what you have to say, and so it's about there. There's a quote that I love that says if someone says no, you're asking the wrong person. And I think that that can be very valuable because if you have an idea.

00:40:51 Speaker 3

You should never stop trying to make your dreams a reality, and it sounds like such a cliche thing. But that means that, you know, raise that fuss if if you see something that you think needs change.

00:41:06 Speaker 3

Be that driving force and don't wait for someone else to take. Take the lead on it because we do have the capability to do great things. We have more resources available to us than ever before. There's no reason that we can't go out and make that change, and I think it is really, it is our responsibility to.

00:41:27 Speaker 3

Be that unique voice. And so we should make that a priority.

00:41:32 Speaker 1

Great advice for our.

00:41:33 Speaker 1

00:41:35 Speaker 2

What advice do you have for educators or school administrators?

00:41:39 Speaker 3

See students as.

00:41:41 Speaker 3

Peers don't see them as someone who's less than we.

00:41:48 Speaker 3

May not have as much experience as you do in this direct thing, but we do have a valuable opportunity to speak up and help you learn as well. I kept mentioning the the concept of like that mutualistic effort that comes from learning.

00:42:08 Speaker 3

That if you are just one person.

00:42:11 Speaker 3

Versus a classroom of 30 students. So let's say or you're one person versus a school of 500. There's so many other ideas that can be taken into account and so many different ways that people can receive information and your way may not always work for them, and that's OK.

00:42:30 Speaker 3

And it's just important that we recognize that and we just continue striving to be the best we can for everyone because in the end that's that's the way that students can best learn and that's the way that I think administrators and teachers can.

00:42:45 Speaker 3

And best do their jobs as well. Is making sure that everyone is everyone's good. Any lunch with the students.

00:42:53 Speaker 1

Get to know your.

00:42:54 Speaker 1

00:42:55 Speaker 3

Go sit in the cafeteria.

00:42:57 Speaker 1

What are you most proud?

00:42:58 Speaker 3

Of I'm the most proud of how far we have come. I think that the.

00:43:03 Speaker 3

Idea that you know, I think that the question about.

00:43:08 Speaker 3

How student voice has evolved over the years, I think that I am really proud of where it's come because young people aren't slowing down and I think that that's good. I think that it.

00:43:21 Speaker 3

It means that we're we're aware and we are going to make a difference and we are going to be the change we want to see in the world and I think that it, I'm really proud that we're taking this stance because as a young person feels really good to know that I have an opportunity to help shape the future that I'm going to.

00:43:41 Speaker 3

Walk into someday.

00:43:42 Speaker 3

I have an opportunity to help shape what the career field looks like that I want to go into and I think that's really important.

00:43:50 Speaker 2

As we're wrapping up, our listeners, would like to know what are your goals and plans for the future?

00:43:57 Speaker 3

My goals and plans for the future, I really want to continue working on the advocacy front. I think that I've really found a passion here and I I really love it. I definitely see myself going into public office one day, so who knows, maybe I'll have a very Oval Office one day.

00:44:15 Speaker 3

But yeah, I I guess my biggest goal and biggest plan is to just keep learning and trying.

00:44:22 Speaker 3

To always raise a fuss when I see necessary and bring that positive change anytime I can and help uplift other students. I mentioned a lot about community and I think that, you know, kind of reflecting on that part of learning is just hearing from other people and learning from each other. And so I think that my biggest goal is to just.

00:44:43 Speaker 3

Need as many new people I can listen to their stories as much as I can and share mine as much as I can.

00:44:51 Speaker 2

And as always, our signature question what is your life motto?

00:44:55 Speaker 3

My life mono is actually some lyrics from my very favorite song. It's called right.

00:45:00 Speaker 3

The line and it said you've been as constant as a northern star, the brightest light that shines. And I think that that taking kind of like symbolically means be consistent in everything that you do and always strive to be the brightest star.

00:45:15 Speaker 1

00:45:17 Speaker 2

It is very consistent with this whole episode. Truly amazing.

00:45:21 Speaker 3

Thank you. Thank you.

00:45:22 Speaker 2

I just want to thank you for being on the show and I know you're always like the youngest person in the room, but you're also the wisest. You have all this knowledge that you've picked up and that you've you've had.

00:45:24 Speaker 3

Thank you for having me.

00:45:29 Speaker 3

00:45:33 Speaker 2

Because of your own experiences and it really shines through.

00:45:36 Speaker 3

I really appreciate.

00:45:37 Speaker 1

That also like thank you as well for sharing all of your.

00:45:39 Speaker 1

Wisdom, especially being as young.

00:45:40 Speaker 1

As you are and for the hopeful change you have.

00:45:42 Speaker 2

For the world, so my absolute your outlook.

00:45:43 Speaker 3

Well, thank you.

00:45:45 Speaker 3

Thank you. Thank you guys for kind of you know I touched a lot on like presenting a platform for young people to speak up on and I think that you guys with this podcast give a platform to a base of students that is really overlooked. And I I think that you guys are doing such amazing work uplifting student voice.

00:46:05 Speaker 2

As long as you're doing that.

00:46:05 Speaker 3

00:46:07 Speaker 1

00:46:08 Speaker 2

00:46:12 Speaker 2

Well, that's it for this episode of Youth Voice amplified. If you enjoyed what you heard and want to support the show, please take a moment and rate us and leave us a positive review on your favorite podcast player. It will help us spread awareness of the podcast and find new.

00:46:24 Speaker 1

Listeners. And if you're looking for our show notes or recommended resources for any of our episodes, please visit our website.

00:46:30 Speaker 1

At www.kern.org/Y, VA, if you have any questions, comments or concerns or would like to recommend a guest or topic, you can e-mail us at use voice amplified@gmail.com.

00:46:41 Speaker 2

Join us for our next episode when Brian and I stood down with our next youth storyteller. Thanks for listening and we'll see you next time.

00:46:49 Speaker 1

And we add it here.

00:46:54 Speaker 4

Youth voice amplified is a youth LED project at the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office created, produced and hosted by Janessa Fisher and Brian Johnson with writing, research, and additional production support by Kim Silva Allison Baptiste.

00:47:09 Speaker 4

And the current educational television network.

00:47:12 Speaker 4

Major funding for the youth Voice Amplified Podcast is provided by the student achievement and Support Division of the California Department of Education through the Homeless Innovative Program Grant. Thanks for listening.

People on this episode

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Brian Johnson

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Gennessa Fisher