Yolo County Youth Civic Initiative
OUR MISSION STATEMENT
OUR MISSION STATEMENT
OUR MISSION STATEMENT
The Yolo County Youth Civic Initiative (YCYCI) seeks to collaborate to build youth awareness and understanding in civic engagement by creating, promoting, and enhancing school/community efforts that increase youth involvement in the civic process.
ABOUT THE INITIATIVE
ABOUT THE INITIATIVE
ABOUT THE INITIATIVE
Launched in 2017, the Yolo County Youth Civic Initiative (YCYCI) is a collaborative effort from various partners, including the Yolo County Office of Education, Yolo County Office of Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections, Baylor University's School of Education, and the History Project (now the California History-Social Science Project at UC Davis).
About the Initiative
YCYCI is working to increase civic engagement by building teacher and student awareness and understanding, connecting youth involvement in the civic process with the end result of creating, promoting, and enhancing school and community improvement of efforts.
Beginning in 2017, YCYCI collaborated to develop an initial draft curriculum for grade twelve government courses to begin to accomplish these goals. This draft was developed through the receipt of input from state and local education leaders and through a pilot recruitment of select Yolo County teachers. This next phase of the project will allow us to improve the curriculum and move closer to our goals.
YCYCI Awarded Civic Engagement Grant
In 2020, YCYCI was announced as one of six recipients of the LIFT Grant Initiative, a pilot program dedicated to the awareness of, and engagement with, the First Amendment freedoms of speech, expression, and a free press. The grant was funded through the James B. McClatchy Foundation. View the LIFT Grants Initiative overview or the 2020 press release.
In 2022, the James B. McClatchy Foundation announced it would continue to support YCYCI by awarding funding to the program via grants focused on civic engagement and local journalism. View the 2022 press release.
Our Continued Work
YCYCI is continuing its work to revise the draft curriculum to best meet the needs of students. Through a teacher collaborative facilitated by the California History-Social Science Project at UC Davis, the partnership will support and provide coaching to assist the teachers' instruction and observe student results. The partnership will collect student work and feedback, analyze that data, and incorporate their findings into a second revision of the curriculum.
STEERING COMMITTEE
STEERING COMMITTEE
STEERING COMMITTEE
The steering committee serves to oversee the initiative; sharing our expertise and resources to further civic engagement opportunities for Yolo County youth.
- Garth Lewis, Superintendent of Schools, Yolo County Office of Education,
- Jesse Salinas, Registrar of Voters, Yolo County Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections
- Dr. Thomas Adams, former Board Trustee, Davis Joint Unified School District
- Nancy McTygue, Executive Director, California History-Social Science Project
- Beth Slutsky, Deputy Director, California History-Social Science Project
- Dr. Katharine Cortes, Program Coordinator, California History-Social Science Project
- Dr. Kevin Magill, Assistant Professor of Secondary and Social Studies Education, Baylor University
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Maria Arvizu-Espinoza, Associate Superintendent, Educational Services, Yolo County Office of EducationHeather Schlaman, Director, Curriculum & Instruction, Yolo County Office of EducationStan Mojsich, Assistant Superintendent, Equity & Support Services, Yolo County Office of Education
- Katharine Campos, Program Manager, Yolo County Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections
- Armando Salud, Deputy of Elections, Yolo County Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections
- Maria Arvizu-Espinoza, Associate Superintendent, Educational Services, Yolo County Office of Education
- Stan Mojsich, Assistant Superintendent, Equity & Support Services, Yolo County Office of Education
Yolo Youth Engagement Summit (YES!)
