Youth Voice, Youth Choice

Youth voice is important because:

Young people feel misunderstood when most people they meet haven't experienced what they have.

Young people have been through traumatic experiences that, unfortunately, make it much more difficult for them to trust people - making building a positive therapeutic relationship that much more difficult.

Young people become mistrustful of systems; they are represented by many people, and many TAY youth have been negatively Impacted by foster care, social workers, judges, or other individuals in the community that typically are viewed there to help them - but in the TAY experience, these individuals play a large role in the difficulties a young person faces.

TAY come from a history of being devalued, doubted, and having their experiences miscounted; never taken at face value.

TAY do not want to work with individuals that may harbor private or unconscious ideas about them; relating to or about their experiences and whether or not it is their fault personally they have landed in them.

TAY are tired of working with individuals with no interest in hearing their side of the story, or that will take their thoughts, ideas, or aspirations as a joke or something to cast doubt upon.

TAY youth deserve services that are built with them and their needs in mind. TAY historically have been taken advantage of by individuals and networks within the services that are supposed to protect them and level their playing field - this leaves an impact.

Young adults should not only be asked to serve on committees; they also should be in a leadership capacity on committees with their thoughts/ideas directly woven into decisions.

Youth Choice:

Youth choice is what individuals use to help organizations realize that you can't just listen to youth voices and have them at the table

You have to collect and take their voices into account, enacting change at different levels in response to findings

TAY choice directing services has helped us to combat difficulties with engagement and TAY retention in services

TAY choice consistently teaches us new areas in which TAY voice and choice should be taken into account

TAY choice represents the uplifting and importance of how the individuals actually receiving services in the community think, feel, and react to the experience of getting services

TAY choice represents the importance of all individuals to have the right to selfdetermination, power of choice over their futures, and empowerment to reach their own goals and dreams.

Service plans for young adults must be developed with input of the young adult and reflect their thinking on their immediate needs as well as the path that they want their life to take; a young adult must own their plan for the plan to work.