Our Program
The Colorado Youth Congress is a community of 50 young people who come from high schools across the state. CYC members commit to a one-year term, and the vast majority stay until they graduate. We meet every week for an hour in the evening, plus every other Saturday to practice wellness, learning, and leadership development.
As you’ll see below, much of our time will be spent caring for ourselves and each other, learning about issues through the lens of complex adaptive systems, and practicing leadership by partnering with influential decision-makers at the state and local levels.
The Pillars
In order to deliver on the impact we seek to make, we have identified the following milestones to achieve by 2026.
By explicitly naming these goals, we are simultaneously claiming three essential pillars of our three-year strategic plan:
Wellness
We care about the holistic well-being of our members first and foremost.
We pay each member a $500 stipend, provide access to a $25,000 wellness fund for our members and their families, and provide robust and culturally affirming mental health.
Learning
90% of the youth we serve demonstrate the capacity to analyze issues using the lens and language of complex systems.
We help our members see the world through the lens of complex systems so that they can be effective leaders both.
Leadership
90% of CYC members practicing youth-adult partnership will experience their agency and inspired to pursue further leadership.
We partner with other youth and adult organizations so that our members can begin to use their lived experience and vision to influence decision-making at the local and state levels.
What to learn more about CYC?
Get our full Strategic Plan
Want to be a part of our program?
We’re always excited to connect with young folks who want to make a difference.
