YC Minutes 02-10-2022
CITY OF FEDERAL WAY
YOUTH COMMISSION
th
Thursday, February 10, 2022 Zoom- Virtual Meeting
5:00 p.m. Federal Way Community Center
MEETING MINUTES
Chair Andy called the meeting to order at 5:04pm
Present: Andrew Deo, Ankit Gowda, Niko Manjares
Absent: Mary Alison Wood (unexcused)
Staff: Kim Ledyard (Community Recreation Coordinator), David Clemons (Customer Service Coordinator), Ashriya
Guptar (Administrative Assistant)
PUBLIC COMMENT
No public comments.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Chair Andy motions to approve the minutes from the last meeting, Commissioner Niko seconds the motion, all
commissioners vote in favor to approve.
COMMISSION BUSINESS
Recruiting New Commissioners
Ledyard asks the commissioners to work on recruiting new members. Chair Andy suggests getting the word out
through social media. Vice-Chair Ankit brings up talking to teachers and counselors. Chair Andy asks Ledyard to
send over the YC flyer we’ve previously used for advertising. Bryan asks how to pitch/ persuade joining the Youth
Commission when recruiting. Chair Andy asks about community service hours and Clemons brings up creating
community service opportunities within the Youth Commission. Commissioner Niko suggests creating a list of
benefits of joining the Commission. Clemons discusses benefits such as college applications, connecting with the
city and being involved in the community.
FirStep Scholarship Application Draft
Vice-Chair Ankit discusses an application outline that he found and talks about questions that he’d like to ask on
the application. Chair Andy goes through the previous FirStep Application formatting and suggests doing
something similar. He suggests that maybe the Fee Assistance requirement should not be necessary. Clemons
explains that the application is meant to help those in need financially. Commissioner Niko asks if Federal Way
residency is required for the Fee Reduction Application, Clemons confirms that it is not. Chair Andy asks about
distributing the funds and how they should be distributed across quarters. He suggests awarding a different
amount according to which program the applicant is signing up for. Ledyard explains that the funds do not need
to be used all at once for one program that the participant is trying to sign up for, it can be used little by little for
multiple programs/memberships. Vice-Chair Ankit states that the full amount requested by participants on the
application does not have to be granted, and that it is not absolute. Chair Andy goes over each question from the
previous application and commissioners take turns deciding if they need rewording. The commissioners would like
to ask about how applicants help the community or how they contribute to the community instead of asking
about role models. The commissioners decide on the question: In what ways have you helped your community
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Youth Commission, February 10, 2022 Page 2
(community service, volunteering etc.)? Chair Andy asks about the application approval process and if all of the
commissioners should have a say in the approval process. Commissioner Niko would like to discuss it as a group so
that they can discuss and make decisions together. Vice Chair Ankit would like to discuss it independently and
brings up that it may be easier time wise depending on the amount of applicants. Chair Andy motions to table the
discussion about the approval process of the application, Vice-Chair Ankit seconds the motion, all commissioners
vote in favor.
In Person/Virtual YC Meetings
Clemons explains that the commissioners can decide whether they'd like to schedule a time to meet in person at
the FWCC. Chair Andy says that virtual meetings would be easier for everyone in terms of travel, expenses and
communication. Vice-Chair Ankit and Commissioner Niko are open to both in-person and virtual meetings. Vice-
Chair Ankit suggests meeting in -person once a month. Chair Andy asks if the commissioners would like to meet in
person on the first Thursday of every month. Each commissioner agrees. Chair Andy votes to approve the new
meeting format, Vice-Chair Ankit seconds the motion, all commissioners vote to approve.
NEXT MEETING/ AGENDA ITEMS
The next regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 24th
Discussion Topics for next meeting:
-Recruiting new commissioners
-Ideas and methods
-Firstep application
-Advertising
-Workplan Discussion
-Raffle
ADJOURNMENT
Chair Andy ended the meeting at 5:39pm