HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020_08_19 005 Youth In Government City Council PresentationYouth in Government 2020
Final City Council Presentation
Students:Abhinav Patkar,Alexandre Paquier,Angad,
Singh,Angelina Hong,Anika Ramanathan,Chloe Lee,
Emily Choi,Esther Luan,Justin Guo,Karishma
Goswami,Keon Nikfar,Meghana Simhadri,Natalie
Lager,Safia Peer,Suraj Mehrotra,and Tina Zhong.
Esther Luan ●New perspective of
community issues, which can
be applied to my advocacy
work
●See more sides when looking
at policy in the future
●Be able to weigh the different
factors that go into
implementing a policy and
supporting feasible ones
●Considering a career in
government
Meghana
Simhadri
During this program, I learned
about:
-the inner -workings of local
government
-how essential teamwork is in
government
-new activities to participate in
-how I can better be involved in the
government and the community
In the future, I hope to engage more
with decision making in Saratoga and
continue learning about the ways I can
impact others.
Justin Guo -This program has opened up the
world of government to someone who
had little knowledge of city
government. Not only did I learn the
different branches and parts of city
government like Saratoga, I was also
exposed to possible solutions to
modern world problems like climate
change and wage gap.
I will be able to use these solutions in
the future to try to create positive
change and help the world.
Emily Choi ●How the city of Saratoga runs,
including all of our facilities and
partners
●Minimal -service city: many of our
services are outsourced
●Making more informed decisions on
utilizing my civic capacity to impact
local government
●Motivated to have my voice be heard
in local government
●How long and involved the process
of getting an idea discussed on the
board and passed
●Feedback: elongate the program
Angelina Hong During this course I learned
-how elections work
-the different departments
-what it takes to be a person in a role
of government.
Though I personally don’t plan to go into
government, the knowledge I gained will
definitely help me when I want to speak
out about topics I’m passionate about.
This course also improved my public
speaking skills which will help a ton in
the future.
Keon Nikfar I learned a lot from this
program. Many of the topics we
covered during our sessions, I had
no idea about prior.
-I learned how a city council
operates and how policies are
made.
-I learned of all the different
roles of the city council
-I was exposed to some of the
jobs are and what they do.
-I will consider a government
job in the future
Chloe Lee Prior to participating in the Youth in
Government program, I did not have much
experience or knowledge about local
governments. However, through this
opportunity, I learned about how our local
government runs, and the demanding work that
is done behind the scenes for the best
community. The program took me to step by
step to give me a better understanding of our
city, with detailed experiences from panelists
who took time from their busy schedules, which
were all very inspiring and something to look up
to, considering how much work they do and
what they still learn from their careers. I was
able to find my interest in politics and to
consider working as a part of the government in
the future.
Tina Zhong
Through this program, I learned about
the structure and procedures of the city
council. I am also now more familiar with
the different departments and programs
in Saratoga. I also got a better
understanding of the jobs in law
enforcement, library, and more.
I enjoyed working on the different
assignments and learned how to better
analyze situations with either the PEST
or pro/con tables. I also learned how to
directly impact and help the community.
Overall, the program is very
comprehensive and I would recommend
other teenagers to participate in the
future.
Anika Ramanathan The Youth in Government program really
helped me understand how the Saratoga
city government works. Before I joined
this class, I had no experience in the
local government, and I knew very little
about the processes of creating new
policies, who our community partners
are, what the different departments do.
The YIG program has certainly helped
me learn a lot about our local
government.
This class gave me a much clearer
picture of our city and what we as
students and residents of Saratoga can
do to help our community.
Suraj Mehrotra I learned a lot in this program, but
some very special things I learned and
that I will probably need going forward
is how council meetings are run, how
everyone in the local government
force works together to achieve things
(mayor relies on staff, etc).
I learned about lots of different
volunteer opportunities and careers of
people who work for government. I
learned a lot about the city and how
the complex systems run. This course
is definitely a great resource that I
would love to be a part of again.
Angad Singh This program was one of the most
interactive programs I have been a
part of. I really valued getting to meet
important city members, such as
councilmembers, and even the mayor!
I’m sure if the program was in person,
we could have experienced a lot more,
though.
We were able to specifically take
looks at different aspects of Saratoga
and what keeps it running. Being so
in -depth is also what gave this
program value. Having an introduction
to local government will also help me
as I get more and more serious about
my education.
Karishma Goswami
This program was a great experience for
me, and I am so glad I got the chance to
participate! I loved all of the group projects
we had during the program because they
gave us the chance to put the lessons we
learned into practice, and they gave us a
chance to meet and work with new people
despite the fact that the program had to be
done remotely. I also found the panels very
interesting, and I liked how we got to meet
different people and learn about their
individual experiences working in local
government.
I learned a lot from the commission's how I
can be more active in the city, and would
love to start volunteering with some of
them.
Safia Peer The Youth in Government program was an
extremely rewarding experience for me
-I learned so much about the crucial role of
the government
-I learned about previous government projects
and all they have done to help our community
-I found out about amazing new volunteering
opportunities
-Most importantly, I learned about different
ways I can voice my opinions
-I would definitely like to be a part of the
government in the future!
Alex Paquier This program has taught me a lot about our history and
government which I find to be crucial to a Saratogan’s life.
I also learned the process of becoming a council member
and how much they have to sacrifice for their city. This
program embedded fun and learning together which makes
for a very fun experience. Since my mom is an active
member of the community, it’s nice to know what she does
and to appreciate what she’s going through. I find it mind
blowing that everyone on the council is basically a
volunteer. Another awesome thing was meeting the mayor,
which I thought was beneficial to our learning experience.
Abhinav Patkar I had an amazing time during this program
and got to see and learn about many things
such as:
-Meet our local leaders, even our
mayor!
-How city council makes decisions and
the process they go through
-How I can make change in my
community
-A better understanding of our local
government and national
Natalie Lager ●Mock city council meeting
○As mayor, I learned that I had
to mostly listen to others
○Importance of public
participation in government
○As staff, I learned about how
Saratoga combats climate
change
●Learned how to become engaged
with community partners
●Considering going into
government in the future
This concludes our presentation.
Thank you!