Amy Anderson thinks civics is cool. And she wants kids to think so, too.
To get them engaged, she's doing everything from helping to recruit teens to work as election judges to teaching them how to have respectful conversations in an era of increasingly polarizing politics and decreasing civility.
"It's more important than ever to not take for granted we need to teach kids these things," she said.
Anderson is the executive director of Minnesota Civic Youth, a St. Paul nonprofit that's merging this spring with the YMCA's Youth in Government program to create the Center for Youth Voice, a new statewide hub for civic engagement.
It's yet another nonpartisan effort aimed at teaching students to go beyond protests and rallies to create lasting change in government.
Last weekend, a first-ever summit in Minneapolis taught students how to get involved as student representatives on school boards or organize around issues they care about.
"Schools don't provide adequate resources to [students on how to] make a difference in communities," added Raina Meyer, 17, of Edina, who is on the Minnesota Youth Council, which organized the event. "If we give them the tools to go to more than just rallies and protests … it is really powerful and is definitely needed."
A growing number of young people across Minnesota have become politically involved in recent years, from persuading city councils to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to leading protests on everything from climate change to gun control in the aftermath of school shootings. While the momentum is encouraging, many teens don't have the means or access to speak up, Anderson said, adding that more efforts are needed to combat apathy and mobilize the next generation of voters and civic leaders.
