Youth As Resources of the Rochester-Monroe County Youth Bureau
Tamara Jones, Coordinator: 585-753-6455
The Youth As Resources (YAR) coordinator works side by side with the Youth Voice, One Vision Youth Council (formerly City/County Youth Council) to support their interest and directions. The coordinator will meet with all known youth involvement/participation/leadership groups in the county to identify their goals and activities and link them to opportunities for representation on Youth Voice, One Vision (YVOV) and training support through YVOV. An interest list will be developed with youth that would like to be available to represent and share youth views for the following types of requests:
- Radio, television and media requests
- Community planning and task force representation
- Panel discussions and editorial responses
- Advocacy on pending legislative issues
Youth As Resources (YAR) is a community-based youth philanthropy and youth voice program, funded by the Rochester-Monroe County Youth Bureau and United Way Services Corporation. Rochester Area Community Foundation provides funds that give youth the opportunity to be grant makers. The YAR Board provides small grants to young people to design and carry out civic engagement activities and service projects which address social problems, resolve community issues, and contribute to significant community improvement. YAR is governed by local youth and adults responsible for grant making.
When youth become involved in YAR, they begin to feel a sense of connection, civic responsibility, and self-worth as they see their own actions cause positive change. YAR serves as a model of youth/adult partnerships by engaging young people as primary actors in policy and decision making. A fundamental YAR philosophy is that youth can and do make a difference in meeting critical community and social needs on a number of levels.
Through involvement in YAR, young people have gained, and continue to gain confidence, leadership skills, and new insights about themselves, others, and the value of contributing to their communities.
Youth As Resources Mural Project for DHS Reception Area
Positive Youth Development is an important component of the Rochester-Monroe County Youth Bureau’s mission. Executive Director, Karla F. Boyce, requested that the Youth As Resources (YAR) Board consider designing and creating a festive mural to decorate the reception area at the Monroe County Department of Human Services (DHS). Boyce believed it was a great way to brighten the lives of youth who visit DHS with their families.
Under the guidance of Tamara Jones, with the creative talent of Shawn Dunwoody, the Youth as Resources Board designed the mural. It was the desire of the board to give youth visiting the reception area something constructive to do that would brighten their day and encourage their imagination.
It was difficult for the board members to determine the theme of the mural. After long deliberation between an outdoor theme, a gingerbread house, a castle, and an outer space roller coaster, they all compromised on a gingerbread castle that would lead you from outside into the castle and out into space. The idea was to make this wall space interactive, so they wanted the castle to have a kitchen and table; this would be made possible by painting the mural first with a magnetic paint and also a chalk compatible paint.
During the actual painting of the mural, there were many participants in the process that did not feel they were capable of mastering the art of painting. However, Mr. Dunwoody continued to encourage everyone by building the confidence of all who participated, thus enabling everyone to be a part of something so imaginative. It is the consensus of the Monroe County Department of Human Services that the Youth as Resources Board has literally brightened the waiting room and the lives of those who partake in the interactive mural.
