Last week was the second meeting of the five student leaders who have been accepted as members of the City of Colton Youth Council. The members of the Youth Council for 2025-26 are Ava Diaz, Samantha Sandoval, Kaitlyn Torres, Jasmin Lopez Herrera, and Leah Ornelas. All of the students attend Colton High School and have a strong academic record in the classroom and have demonstrated leadership skills in their programs of interest.
The purpose of the Youth Council is to train outstanding students who have great potential for becoming future community leaders, and to teach them about leadership, Colton History, and civic service. “This is a wonderful opportunity for these students,” exclaimed Gabriel Torres, father of Kaitlyn who also attended the meeting, which is open to the public.
Created in 2016, the Youth Council was the brainchild of Dr.G, who was a high school teacher at Colton High for many years, and is now retired. After four very successful years of the original program, the doors to that program closed down for a couple of years due to the pandemic. The meeting last week marked the beginning of a new school year and according to one of the Youth Council students, Samantha Sandoval, “We’re off to a good start.”
The September 3 meeting was very successful. Ava Diaz served as Chair and managed the agenda beautifully. Ava was appointed Chair on account of her current position as Youth Commissioner on the Colton Parks and Recreation Commission. The agenda included a Welcome, Pledge of Allegiance, Report on the Parks & Recreation Commission, Schedule of Guest Speakers, Guest Speaker presentation by Heidi Strutz, Recreation Manager with Community Services, Leadership/Volunteer Opportunities, a review of Colton Publications, and announcements. Future meetings will feature a variety of guest speakers including the City Manager, Police Chief, and Economic Development Manager among others. The students will receive expert instruction and have the opportunity to meet in-person several community leaders and civic service professionals.
Looking forward, the Youth Council plans to meet once a month, on the first Wednesday at 3:00pm. With the school year well off the ground, the students in the program will have many opportunities not only to discuss Parks and Recreation issues, but to volunteer in the community for an array of activities that will contribute to community awareness and improvement. Hopefully this message will spread to other students at the high school as this high-quality program continues to develop.
The City of Colton is very excited about this program and looks forward to their development and involvement in civic affairs. Congratulations to the five students of the Colton Youth Council for 2025-26.