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Youth Advisory Board
About the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board
The Mayor's Youth Advisory board will be a group of 12-15 members, age 16-21. These members will meet a minimum of once a month, depending on current projects, throughout their one-year term. The board will focus on the representation of youth in public policy, as well as their engagement in the Everett community.
Mission
The Mayor's Youth Advisory Board will represent our community’s diverse youth in legislation, policies and City practices. They will also work to provide resources to our youth population in Everett and provide important feedback to the mayor. The goal of this board is to ensure the inclusion and representation of our future leaders in the Everett community.
Meet the 2020-2021 Youth Advisory Board:
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Esther Park
Hello, my name is Esther, and I am a senior at Henry M. Jackson High School, currently serving the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board by staffing the commission! I originally began my work as an executive intern and assisting Everett’s districting commission. I am now helping organize and manage the youth board. I chose to do this because I truly care about civic engagement from young people and, with future aspirations in politics, I am receiving the chance to experience government in real time - something that’s truly priceless to me. When I’m not doing homework or helping the board, you can find me crocheting, reading a book or baking some fresh bread! A fun fact about me is that I lived in Hawaii for six months as a kid.
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Laura Alcantar Soto
Hello, my name is Laura Alcantar Soto and I'm a junior at Cascade High School. I joined the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board because as a Mexican woman of color, I have always been very passionate about the topic of social justice, especially racial and gender inequality. I believe that change starts with the younger generation and this board is an amazing way for youth such as myself to advocate for our community. In the future, I plan to double major in the field of STEM and Spanish. I would also love to participate in college sports, as running and wrestling have been a passion of mine since middle school. In my free time I love to play guitar and ukulele. I also enjoy baking and exercising often.
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Margot Strezlec
My name is Margot Strzelec, and I’m a senior at Cascade High School. I joined the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board to become more involved in the community and to gain first-hand experience with the inner workings of government and policy. I’m on the high school swim team and a part of mock trial. I hope to study law and political science, and would love to be a death row defense attorney.
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Nancy Le
Hi, I’m Nancy Le and I’m a junior at Mariner High School! At school, I’m a part of Mariners ASB and leadership program. I also enjoy playing tennis in my free time, but I’m not very good at it. Outside of school, I’m a bookworm and an astrology nerd. I am excited to be a part of this board and will serve to the best of my abilities in hopes of making a positive difference in the Everett community and YAB! I also hope to be able to study abroad sometime in the next few years. Since I’m currently learning two languages, language immersion is something I’ve been looking into. Foreign studies have always been my favorite subject in school. I wanted to be a lawyer ever since I was in middle school, however over the past several months I’ve realized my passion actually lies in activism. Law and politics was the only accessible way I thought I could accomplish that. I want to make a global difference in the issues I’m passionate about which include sustainable development goals.
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Glenda Wabaluku
Hi, my name is Glenda Wabaluku, and I joined the board because I wanted to understand the issues affecting our community and help these issues become better for those living in the community. I am first-generation student who plans to get a bachelors and master’s degree in business administration and management, with a minor in entrepreneurship. I then plan to pursue law school and study civil or defense law. Fun fact: I had the pleasure of travelling to France, Belgium and Germany during the last World Cup.
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Terra Pilch-Bisson
My name is Terra Pilch-Bisson. I am a junior at Henry M. Jackson High School and currently serving a two-year term as chair of the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Board. I have a great interest in public service and youth civic engagement. I also serve as a student representative to the Everett Public Schools Board, as a member of the Snohomish County Young Democrats, and as an intern for State Representative John Lovick. I’m excited to tackle big issues from the city’s youth perspective this year after laying the board’s groundwork last year! I love hiking, reading and anything outdoors. I’m interested in pursuing local organizing and politics in the future. One fun fact about me is that I’m actually a dual citizen (Canadian-American).
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Arshpreet Kaur
My name is Arshpreet Kaur. I’m a senior at Cascade High School and I am excited to be a part of the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board. I think this will give me the opportunity to provide feedback to my community, as a peer, regarding what is going on in the city of Everett. I will use this opportunity to better our community, not only for the youth but for everyone. I want to go into the medical field and I love sports and clubs. I also enjoy doing fun projects!
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Charles Wichert
My name is Charles Wichert and I am a third-year student at the University of Washington, Bothell campus. I joined the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board so I could make a difference in my local government. My future aspirations include to graduate from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts in law, economics and public policy (LEPP), travel to Germany, and hopefully work at the City of Everett as an executive team member for Mayor Franklin. In my spare time, I enjoy watching movies, going out, hiking and swimming. While I originally grew up in California, I made the decision to move to Washington two years ago to pursue my educational goals and start working towards a career in politics.
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Khanh Doan
Hi all! My name is Khanh and I'm a senior attending Mariner High School in Everett. I joined the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board (YAB) because I'm passionate about politics and I think it's extremely important for youth to be politically and civically engaged. Being a part of YAB allows me to remain knowledgeable of the politics of my local community and contribute to it as well. Some of the issues I care about include environmental, social and reproductive justice, equitable education and gender equality. In my free time, I love watching Jeopardy, going on walks, calligraphing and listening to music. My career and academic pursuits surround electoral politics and advocacy. In the future, I'd like to pursue a career in public office.
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Joe Hull
My name is Joe and I've lived in Everett for the past sixteen years with my family of nine. Over the last five years, I've cultivated a love of government and policy through competitive debate, so when the opportunity to serve on the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board opened, I immediately applied. That led to another opportunity to serve on the Fiscal Sustainability Advisory Committee. I'm currently a Running Start student at Everett Community College and I hope to study United States policy and politics in the future.
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Julien Odom
Hello, my name is Julien S. Odom. I am a senior at Henry M. Jackson High School. Reading, watching political discussions and studying history are my hobbies. My career aspirations include earning a dual degree in history and public policy. I want to affect change against systemic, racist policies and agendas that affect Black people, while also advocating for other marginalized groups of people. I believe that unity and having a collective agenda can bring progress, change and hope for all.
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Khloe Martinez
My name is Khloe Martinez, and I'm currently a senior at Everett High School. One of the biggest reasons I decided to join the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board was for the opportunity to create change on a level that is larger than engaging with the community at school or on the streets. I would love to attend a four-year university next year, hopefully in-person. I hope to major in either psychology, film, or political science. However, right now, I really enjoy baking, writing and taking film classes in my free time! I submitted college applications a while ago, so I am currently trying to focus on the end of my senior year and taking care of my kitten and two older dogs.