GRPS: GRPS Scholar Advisory Council Teams With PBGR

Press release from Grand Rapids Public Schools:

2022-03-09

GRPS Scholars Advisory Council Teams with PBGR

As the Participatory Budgeting Grand Rapids (PBGR) Steering Committee designed its equity and engagement plan, it prioritized a goal to collect a wide range of ideas on how to spend $2 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. It believed the best way to do that was to get participation from young people. That’s why it opened its idea submission portal to residents 13 years and older.

To encourage teen participation in its process, it reached out to Grand Rapids Public Schools’ (GRPS) Superintendent's Scholar Advisory Council. The Scholar Advisory Council, part of the GRPS Strategic Plan, includes two juniors and/or seniors in each of GRPS’s 10 high schools. The group of 20 meets monthly to amplify scholar voice, advocate for student needs and increase engagement of GRPS students.

“We know that active youth engagement leads to improved outcomes. That’s why we sought a meaningful partnership with the Scholar Advisory Council,” Bo Torres, PBGR steering committee member, said. “These scholars will use their influence with their peers to encourage teens to become involved in the participatory budgeting process. Our young people's ideas, skills, and strengths will enhance the PBGR initiative. We are looking forward to seeing their unique perspective on ways to improve our community through the ideas that they submit.”

Luca Chisholm, Grand Rapids Board of Education Scholar Representative, Superintendent’s Scholars Advisory Council, and Senior at City High Middle School said students are excited to participate and have their voice heard.

“The City of Grand Rapids has extended the invaluable opportunity for GRPS scholars to be part of the Participatory Budgeting process,” Chisholm said. “The Superintendent’s Scholar Advisory Council is leading engagement efforts so scholars from every corner of our city have a voice not only in district affairs but also in our city’s budget process. Empowering youth voice in the allocation of our public dollars not only helps to establish a standard of sustainable connection between our city’s youth and our elected officials but also works to recognize the crucial connection between community investment and student success.”

Residents of Grand Rapids age 13 or older are invited to submit community project ideas by way of its portal at PBGR.org. Ideas that meet specific ARPA funding priorities may be submitted for consideration through May 31 in one of four ways:

• Completing the PBGR Idea Submission Survey at: https://publicinput.com/PBGrandRapids
• Texting “pb” to 73224
• Calling and providing the idea to 311 or dialing 616.456.3000
• Printing the idea submission survey PDF at PBGR.org, filling it out and returning in-person or via U.S. Mail to the City’s Customer Service Center located at: 300 Monroe Avenue NW Grand Rapids, MI 49503. Multiple ideas may be submitted, but each should be submitted on a separate form and returned.

Grand Rapids’ participatory budgeting process follows best practice for municipal budgeting which outlines $1 million per 100,000 in population. The $2 million that the City has set aside for participatory budgeting exceeds similar-sized cities such as Oakland, CA ($185K per 100K), Durham, NC ($889K per 100K) and Sacramento, CA ($200K per 100K).

The City Commission decided to distribute funds through graduated dispersal of $2 million across the City’s three wards. This allows for investment based in part on the distribution of demographic and economic factors in each Ward. The graduated ward distribution of funds includes:

• First Ward - $600,000
• Second Ward - $400,000
• Third Ward - $1,000,000

The PBGR Steering Committee includes: (First Ward) Mallory Patterson, Adnoris (Bo) Torres, Michael Scholten; (Second Ward) Doug Booth, Lisa Knight, Cailin Kelly; (Third Ward) Kristian Grant, LaKiya Thompson-Jenkins and Pastor Kenneth Hoskins.

To learn more about the project, the steering committee, or sign up for the newsletter, please visitwww.PBGR.org, facebook.com/PBGrandRapids and twitter.com/PBGrandRapids.

This press release was produced by Grand Rapids Public Schools. The views expressed here are the author’s own.