Investing in Youth as Community Leaders

By Akayla Matthews, Laiza Eve Reconoco, and Victor Diaz

Published in Community Schooling (Issue 4, Summer 2023), Y-PLAN student researchers from the Law & Social Justice pathway at Oakland High School share what it feels like to be trusted to engage in authentic policy work. They detail their experiences learning about a real issue facing their community, and connecting what they learn in the classroom to their lives outside of school to make lasting change. They detail their research and policy recommendations, many of which have been shared with and taken up by district policy-makers and city officials.