The Hampton Experience as a New Model for Youth Civic Engagement

SUMMARY A commitment to engaging young people in civic life and public decision-making in Hampton, Virginia has inspired a model for youth civic engagement. The article presents two ingredients for successfully engaging youth: creation of a system of multiple engagement opportunities, and systematic efforts to address adult attitudes that fail to recognize young people as resources to their communities. The author analyzes the lessons learned from working within a system of youth civic engagement, and presents preliminary findings of the benefits of engaging young people in the civic life of a city.