Composition of the Youth Council

(a) The Youth Council shall be composed of 32 youth from various geographic sectors of the District, and shall include members who represent youth with special needs, as follows: (1) Three members shall be from each of the 8 wards in the District; (2) Four members shall be presently under an order of commitment to the District’s juvenile justice system, at least one of whom presently resides in a group home; and (3) Four members shall be presently in the District’s foster care system; at least one of whom shall reside in a group home. (b) Membership of the Youth Council shall reflect a broad range of diversity encompassing relevant differences in ethnicity, location of residency within the District, religion, and gender. (c) Members of the Youth Council shall have been a District resident for at least one year, not including time residing in a college dormitory, prior to their application to serve on the Youth Council. College students shall be eligible to participate on the Youth Council, if they have been a District resident, living outside a college dormitory, for at least one year prior to their application to serve on the Youth Council. (d) Youth applying to participate on the Youth Council shall have: (1) A sincere interest in, and motivation to work for the community; (2) A background of community-based activity; (3) A general knowledge of activities and needs in the sector of the community which they are selected to represent; (4) An ability to bring creative perspectives about youth issues and concerns to the Youth Council; (5) The ability to work patiently and constructively in a group setting; (6) The ability to responsibly fulfill commitments; and (7) An interest in the development of leadership skills.