A statewide initiative that enables high school students to act on ideas to improve their communities announced a new round of funding and a call for applications.
A statewide initiative that enables high school students to act on ideas to improve their communities announced a new round of funding and a call for applications.
Five cohorts of students across Indiana will be chosen to participate in the My Community, My Vision program, which provides four months of workshops, planning, and fundraising for a community project they would like to see come to life in their town or city.
“Maintaining strong and viable communities is important to the future of Indiana, and we need future leaders to begin thinking about their own vision for their city or town,” Indiana Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch said in a statement. “My Community, My Vision invites these future decision makers to share their ideas and plans with local officials. By their involvement, student leaders will learn about the planning process and the collaborative efforts required to create an even more vibrant community.”
High school youth council groups will work throughout the Spring 2023 semester alongside a partnering foundation or local unit of government to determine a project, craft a budget, develop a fundraising goal and strategy, and raise the needed funds for all materials during a 30-day fundraising campaign.
Students who successfully strategize, plan and raise a fundraising goal of between $5,000 and $50,000 towards their community project will receive a matching grant from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority.
Throughout the semester, students will also be required to participate in three in-person workshops, where they will learn about place-based community development, project planning, fundraising strategies, and stakeholder engagement.
At the end of the program, students present their work to their peers and a gathering of Indiana’s community development leaders.
The program is a joint collaboration between the Indiana Philanthropy Alliance Youth Council program and the Association of Indiana Municipalities Mayoral Youth Council program.
Previous student projects have helped bring new trails and parks, recreational activities, plazas, murals, to their towns and cities.
Previous communities to participate since 2014 include: Hobart, Jasper, Mishawaka, North Putnam, Versailles, Batesville, Huntingburg, Liberty, North Putnam, LaPorte, Logansport, Irvington, Warsaw, Crawfordsville, Fort Wayne, Greenfield, Greensburg, Shelbyville, Gary, Anderson, Muncie, Martinsville, Hanover, as well as Cass, Switzerland, Washington and Lawrence counties.
