Skip to main content
Right to a ResponseBring it to my council
The StandardFor StudentsPilot ItResourcesBring it to my council

A proposed youth governance standard

Right to a
Response.

Young people don’t need every recommendation accepted.
They need to know what happened to it.

When a youth group formally makes a recommendation, the institution it advises should respond — even when the answer is no.

Read the Standard Pilot it with your group

The problem

What happens after the meeting ends?

Young people serve on councils, commissions, advisory boards, and student groups because institutions want their perspectives. Districts want student input. Cities appoint youth commissions. Nonprofits build youth boards. Everyone agrees young people should have a voice.

But a youth body may spend weeks discussing an issue, collecting input, and developing a formal recommendation — and then never find out what happened.

No yes.
No no.
No explanation.

The recommendation just disappears.

“Thank you for sharing.” is fundamentally different from “No, and here’s why.”

The standard

Five things. That’s it.

  1. Acknowledge it

    Confirm the recommendation was received.

  2. Name who’s responsible

    Identify the person, office, board, committee, or department considering it.

  3. Set a response window

    Usually 30–60 days, depending on the issue and institution.

  4. Give it a status

    AcceptedMoving forward substantially as proposed.
    ModifiedMoving forward, with changes.
    ReferredAnother person or process needs to consider it.
    DeclinedNot moving forward.

  5. Explain what happens next

    A few clear sentences are enough.

No new department.

No automatic vote.

No guarantee of a yes.

Just close the loop.

What counts as formal

Not every comment starts a countdown.

Youth groups need a simple line between discussion and a formal recommendation.

A vote

The youth body formally approves the recommendation.

In writing

A recommendation is submitted through a memo, email, form, or proposal.

In the minutes

The recommendation is clearly recorded as formal in official meeting minutes.

Pick one. Write it down. Keep it simple.

A quick test

Can your youth council answer these?

  1. How do we formally raise an issue?
  2. Who receives our recommendation?
  3. When will we receive a response?
  4. If it is accepted, what happens next?

If your group cannot answer all four, it may have a pathway for young people to speak without a clear pathway for their ideas to influence anything afterward.

A worked example

What does a response actually look like?

Recommendation recordStatus: Modified
Recommendation
Add student representatives to the district’s school-safety planning process.
Responsible office
Superintendent’s Office
Response
We support including student perspectives, but state requirements prevent students from participating in certain closed portions of the committee’s work. The district will instead appoint two students to the portions where student participation is permitted.
Next step
The Superintendent’s Office will develop an appointment process by October 15 and update the youth council.

The students did not get exactly what they asked for.

But they know:

  • who considered it
  • what was decided
  • why
  • what happens next

Not out of nowhere

This isn’t coming out of nowhere.

Forms of this feedback loop already appear, in pieces, across youth governance. These are practices and precedents — not claims that every one has adopted this exact framework.

  1. Round Rock ISD VOICE. Provides students a pathway to give input directly to district leadership and move student-developed strategies toward implementation.
  2. U.S. EPA National Environmental Youth Advisory Council. Youth recommendations undergo formal agency review, and EPA prepares written responses.
  3. UK Youth Select Committee. Young people make recommendations and the UK Government formally responds, including disagreement when appropriate.
  4. Naga City, Philippines. Youth-governance rules include a formal written feedback process for youth input.

For young people

Okay. How do I actually get this in my council?

  1. Find out what happens now

    Ask where formal recommendations currently go.

  2. Find the adult who owns the process

    Staff liaison, coordinator, principal, superintendent’s office, city staff.

  3. Make one small ask

    Ask for a defined response process.

  4. Suggest a pilot

    90 days, or one semester.

  5. Track recommendations

    Use the free tracker.

Read the Student Implementation Guide Download the Recommendation Tracker

Try it before you adopt it

Don’t rewrite everything.
Test it first.

Organizations can pilot Right to a Response for 90 days or one semester before deciding whether to put it into permanent policy.

A pilot only requires agreeing on:

  • what counts as a formal recommendation
  • who receives it
  • a response timeframe
  • how responses are recorded

Interested in trying it?

Explore a pilot Read the Institution Pilot Guide

Emailing does not commit you or your organization to participating.

Interested, curious, or not sure whether this would fit your group? Email me.

Use it

Use it.

A seat at the table matters.
A response tells young people whether anyone was listening.

Bring Right to a Response to your council

Developed by Arjun Sharda