Framingham Youth Council Chair Announces 5 Subcommittee Chairs

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FRAMINGHAM – Framingham Youth Council Chair Isabella Petroni announced subcommittee appointments and 5 subcommittee chairs.

The 13-member Youth Council was created by the Framingham City Council in 2019, when then Framingham High senior Isabella Petroni wrote an ordinance asking that the legislative branch of the City change the Charter to create an 11-member Youth Council. She wanted the Youth of the City to have a voice in City government just like the Council on Aging.

The Youth Council is comprised of 13 individuals – one from each of Framingham’s nine districts nominated by the district city councilors, two nominated by the City Councilors at large; and two appointed by the Mayor). Members must be between the ages of 13-22, and must reside in Framingham

Petroni was voted the chair and at-large member, and Framingham High student, Chloe Mills was voted the vice chair

The Youth Council created four subcommittees in its inaugural year and a fifth subcommittee on the environment this summer.

Petroni, as chair of the Youth Council, made the subcommittee appointments and appointed the chairs.

Each of the 13-members serves on two subcommittees, except for the chair who serves on only one.

All of the subcommittee chairs are returning members to the Youth Council.

Below is a description of each subcommittee, the five-members of each subcommittee and its chair & vice chair.

Diversity and Inclusion: This subcommittee’s mission is to address the various forms of discrimination that many of our youth in the city face, as well as help to promote the amount of diversity that we currently have in this city. They will focus on working with community leaders, youth, the Framingham Public Schools, the Keefe Technical Regional School District, governmental bodies such as the Disability Commission and the Human Relations Commission, and other organizations to make Framingham a safe and equal place for all.

1. Hamza Rifki, Chair
2. Esther Celoy, Vice-Chair
3. Gabryela S.M. Dias
4. Gaina Jean-Pierre 
5. Haley Strange

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Outreach and Youth Engagement: This subcommittee’s mission is to help promote the idea of the Youth Council to the community, and help increase the amount of youth involved by brainstorming and presenting various opportunities for them to engage in their local government. They will focus on working with the Framingham Public Schools, the Keefe Technical Regional School District, Massachusetts Bay Community College, Framingham State University, the Citizen Participation Officer, and youth nonprofit organizations in order to encourage civic participation by youth throughout Framingham.

1. Jordan Summerfield, Chair
2. Hamza Rifki, Vice-Chair
3. Annabel Francis
4. Alison Jones 
5. Joy Kunda

Health Issues: This subcommittee’s mission is to work on solutions that are most pressing to the physical and mental wellbeing of Framingham’s youth, and help create plans to deal with issues that youth face such as food inequality, mental health, and suicide prevention. They will work with various governmental leaders, the school districts, nonprofit organizations, and the community to help solve these issues.

1. Chloe Mills, Chair
2. Alison Jones, Vice-Chair
3. Ashwina Bangari
4. Haley Strange
5. Jordan Summerfield

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Academic Achievement: This subcommittee’s mission is to address the inequality present in Framingham’s current educational systems. They will focus on working with the School Committee, Keefe Regional Vocational School Committee, the Superintendents, higher education institutions, educational organizations, various principals and teachers, parents, and students to make education a fairer system and allow the youth to flourish.

1. Ashwina Bangari, Chair
2. Joy Kunda, Vice-Chair
3. Esther Celoy
4. Annabel Francis
5. Avi Padyachee 

Sustainability and Environment: The subcommittee’s mission is to work on engaging youth with the current environmental crisis facing our generation and providing a youth perspective to community leaders on environmental issues such as pollution, energy, recreation and open space, conservation, preservation, and environmental justice. They will focus on working with governmental leaders, the City Council and School Committee Environmental Subcommittees, governmental bodies such as the Conservation Commission and the Parks and Recreation Commission, nonprofit organizations, and members of the community at large.

1. Avi Padyachee, Chair
2. Gaina Jean-Pierre, Vice-Chair
3. Gabryela S.M. Dias
4. Chloe Mills 
5. Isabella Petroni

Editor’s’ Note: In full transparency, Petroni is my daughter.