In 2018, the Polk County Board of Commissioners approved the formation of a permanent Youth Advisory Board (YAB) under Polk County Public Health (PCPH).
Current members were appointed in December of 2018 and are: Crookston Eliza Meyer, Co-Chair
Fertile Caidyn Johnson, Co-Chair
East Grand Forks Maia Bowman, Secretary
Crookston Audrey Harbott
Sacred Heart Samuel Modeen
Fertile Autumn Patterson
WEM Kolton Crocker
WEM Teagan Paulson
Fosston Naomi Swanson
Youth of Polk County who are currently in 9th, 10th, or 11th grade are encouraged to apply for a 2 year, Board of Commissioners appointed term. The goal is to add one additional youth from each high school in Polk County. Applications are currently being accepted and are due November 29th.
The Polk-Norman-Mahnomen Community Health Board vision statement is: Communities where all people achieve their optimum health potential. As a youth-serving organization and knowing that youth 0-17 years of age are ~24% of Polk County’s population (US Census Bureau), Public Health values input from local youth – and further, their valuable insights and feedback are required from some funders to assess needs and implement applicable health services.
The YAB provides a vehicle for young people in Polk County to become involved in governmental public health services, merging civic engagement and leadership development for high school students. By engaging youth in the agency’s policies, practices and procedures, it brings new energy, information and knowledge into the mission-based work through youth targeted, age and gender sensitive interventions. As part of developing future leaders of our communities, youth will plan, implement and reflect on limited yet meaningful programming determined by the YAB.
In 2018-2019 the PCPH YAB provided meaningful feedback related to programming related youth needs for public health services and vaping outreach, amongst other topics. They attended the Polk County Fair working on tobacco policy and have been invaluable participants in the current Polk County Community Health Improvement Advisory Committee. Youth board members have gained leadership and parliamentary procedure skills and knowledge in public health practices. They have also toured the Northwestern Mental Health Center and have had numerous productive discussions on youth and community mental well-being. In October of 2019, YAB Board Co-Chair, Caidyn Johnson attended the Minnesota Department of Health Community Health Conference along with PCPH’s Kirsten Fagerlund and Sarah Reese showcasing the formation and work of the YAB.
For more information and the application, please go to the Polk County Public Health webpage-Community Wellness-Youth Advisory Board; or fill out the application in this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PCPHYAB
Questions: Please call PCPH, Kirsten Fagerlund or Sarah Reese at 218-281-3385.
