When town meetings in Manchester, VT let out, board members return to their lives as teachers, store owners, Little League coaches, home makers – and, now, high school students. In a unique partnership with the local high school, Burr and Burton Academy (BBA), and the Foundation, the Town of Manchester appointed high school students to serve on municipal boards and commissions.

Manchester is a lively, historic New England town. As regional center for tourism, the arts and shopping, it is no surprise that Manchester’s leaders regularly confront new development proposals, as well as new regulatory recommendations intended to guide their decisions. Planning is taken seriously, and vehement advocates on every side of issues and proposals weigh in. Until recently, town meetings and debates have been dominated by older voices. Manchester’s Select Board began appointing youth to all Town boards and commissions in 2007, and now high school students spend their weeknights discussing the nuances of zoning setbacks and design standards alongside their adult counterparts.

Students are appointed to the Planning Commission, Design Review Board, Development Review Board, Parks & Recreation Committee, Conservation Commission, Energy Committee and the Mark Skinner Library Board. They serve as full voting members on all but two of the boards, which, for legal reasons, do not allow minors to vote. Students attend meetings, read up on the issues, comment on proposals and make their voices heard.

Feedback to date from the students, the Town’s adult board members and from the community has been uniformly positive. The program will develop to include better training, opportunities for students to speak at conferences and network with other youth leaders, and a broader youth engagement initiative.

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