Oneida County resurrects youth governance program

It hasn’t been active for a few years, but with the informal approval of the Oneida County Board of Supervisors this past month, the county’s UW-Extension 4-H group will be revving up a program to allow area students to sit in on county meetings in a direct hands-on learning approach to civics and government.

The program won’t be exactly the same as the previous iteration, but Anne Williams, the county’s 4-H coordinator, said the new Oneida County Youth in Governance program could be up and running this spring, with the county board’s approval. Williams said the program is an opportunity for teens to have direct participation in Oneida County government by allowing them to serve on county board committees and actively participate in the legislative process.

“From September through February, students will serve as voting members on various county committees, although their votes will be non-binding advisory votes, allowing them to observe and contribute to discussions on issues affecting our community,” Williams said at an April county board presentation. “Students will be paired with a county board supervisor who will serve as mentors to student representatives, which is crucial to the success of this program.”

Williams said students would also attend at least one full county board meeting during that time span and over the summer they would attend training sessions offered by UW-Extension and county staff to learn more about civic engagement, local government, and leadership. 

“Youth and governance is unique as there are no opportunities like this in Oneida County for teens,” she told supervisors. “Students may learn civics in school, … or they may even take a trip to Madison with their class. But students are not sitting in these seats, they’re not sitting in these chairs. Their voices are not often heard in these spaces and they’re not learning directly from those who are actually doing the work: you.”

The program, Williams said, aims to help students gain practical knowledge of local government, develop skills in public speaking, critical thinking, problem solving, and dependability, and to build a network of professional contacts. 

“Research shows that when young people are involved in quality positive youth developments like this, they’re less likely to engage in risky behaviors and more likely to give back to their communities,” she said. “For county board supervisors, there’s a lot to be gained from mentoring students in this way, such as gaining new energy, perspectives, and ideas, becoming more connected and responsible to the needs of youth and families in this county, and helping cultivate the next generation of leaders, informed and capable individuals ready to take on future roles.”

Williams said she could show supervisors reports on the positive outcomes from evaluations of other youth governance programs around the state, but instead, she said, one of the greatest examples of the program’s impact is actually on the county board. 

“Diana Harris, who serves on the county board as a supervisor, participated in the Teens Active in Government program here in Oneida County as a high school student and she’s now serving as a county board supervisor,” she said. 

School support

Williams saids she had spoken with the social studies department at Rhinelander High School, and they were very supportive of the program. 

“They’re excited that it’s returning and they’re open to getting students independent study credits for participating,” she said. “Diana Harris and [county clerk] Tracy Hartman have helped Extension lay the framework for this program, which has been extremely helpful and appreciated.”

But now, Williams said, it was the supervisors’ turn to step up.

“We cannot offer this program without your help,” she said. “Students cannot become immersed and engaged in understanding local government without you. You do not have to be an expert or have an advanced degree or know everything about everything to mentor. You just have to care and be approachable.”

Starting in September, Williams said, the program would ask mentors to meet with their students 30 to 45 minutes before regularly scheduled committee meetings. 

“And when you see a student sit on a committee, we ask that you help create a welcoming environment in that room so that student feels included and has opportunities to participate in discussions,” she said. “Lastly, in following youth protection and safety best practices, we ask the mentor to complete a free background check for Extension, and Jeff Young, our county support staff in our office, is ready and willing to help each of you.”

Williams said she would also be providing an orientation for county board members so that supervisors would feel ready and prepared to serve as mentors to students. She urged supervisors to fill out a sign-up form so the Extension could get the program up and running quickly.

Because this first year will be a pilot program, Williams said it was possible that not everyone who wanted to be a mentor this year will be needed. 

“It really depends on how many students are selected to participate, but if you’re at all interested, please fill out the form,” she said.

Costs and risks

County board chairman Scott Holewinski wanted to know if there would be a cost to the program.

“We did manage to find some resources for the pilot program,” Williams answered. “It’s looking like between $300 and $500, depending on the trainings and things like that. But in the future, that’s something we’d have to look at based on the pilot program.”

Holewinski also wanted to know if the program would be Rhinelander-centric or cover all the high schools in the county.

“The pilot program will be more focused on Rhinelander, just to see how it goes the first year,” Williams said. “But we’re definitely hoping to open it up to all students in grades 10 through 12 in Oneida County.”

Williams also clarified that student members would not be included in closed sessions.

Supervisor Steven Schreier said, jokingly, he considers joining the county board one of the riskier things he’s ever done.

“If these kids aren’t risk adverse, are we, the county, under obligation to pay per diems or mileage or any of that to the participants?” he asked.

Williams said no, at least not in the pilot year. She also clarified that the students would be participating in committee meetings monthly and attend at least one full county board meeting between September and February. Students would also participate in monthly training/education sessions in the summer and one in November.

Supervisor Robb Jensen said that, a number of years ago, the Wisconsin Counties Association had a number of informational things that schools could use to help inform young people about county government.

“This is an extension of that, even though we don’t have to fund for the first year,” Jensen said. “Having been on a number of committees and organizations like Rotary, I think that we could reach out and they could find funding for this. I think there’s a lot of groups that would provide assistance if we need it in 2026.”

There was a discussion about whether a resolution was needed to approve the program or if UW Extension could just launch it. Corporation counsel Mike Fugle said he presumed there would have to be resolution to allow the students to participate in meetings with a non-binding vote.

It was pointed out that the county previously had a teen program allowing participation. Hartman wondered if there was a resolution already on the books allowing it — a resolution from 2013 was mentioned — and Hartman said she would search for it. 

Jensen said he also remembered that, in the previous model, one or two youth representatives from the schools attended the county board meetings.

“I believe that became cumbersome for the student, to once a month not be in school, and they could be missing some classes that they need to attend, and I really think this option here is trying to reach more youth,” he said. “Before, you were looking at one or two people and that was all from the school. Hopefully with this we can reach out and provide more youth an opportunity.”

The program will include evaluations to assess its impact and gather feedback from participants and board supervisors. Students will be selected through an application process conducted by Oneida County UW-Extension.

Richard Moore is the author of “Dark State” and may be reached at richardd3d.substack.com.