As always, we want to thank you for all the work you and your chapter have done to advance Democratic policies and get other students involved. Please continue to take this crucial role and work towards building a better tomorrow.
Legislation Updates
- The Civic Engagement Bill, HB1940, passed the General Assembly and has been sent to the Governor. This bill permits middle and high school students to take an excused absence once a year to participate in civic and political events. Governor Northam has until 3/30 to act and he is expected to sign.
- The Voter Pre-Registration Bill, HB 2125, passed the General Assembly and has been sent to the Governor. This permits the pre-registration of voting for citizens that are 16 years of age or older
- The Constitutional Amendment, HJ 551, which would allow 16-year-olds to vote in local elections, was killed in the subcommittee.
- Resolutions introduced commending efforts
- Resolution commending the Teen Caucus and the Virginia Teenage Republicans.
- Resolution commending Matthew Savage
VAYD Convention
The VAYD Convention will take place between April 16-18, 2021. During this, VAYD will conduct all elections, including the Chair and Vice Chair positions for the Teen Caucus. We will also adopt resolutions/policy positions, and hold trainings/workshops. We want to remind you to continue writing letters for events you participated in and have them signed by a VAYD Executive Board Member, such as Matt. If you have any questions contact Matt, Mehreen, or Saehee.
Chapter of the Month/March Madness
The Teen Caucus is holding our third round of the Chapter of the Month Competition! Chapters are judged on the basis of events, participation, phone banking, and membership. In February, the South Lakes High School chapter won our competition.
Meetings with Chapters
If you are a chapter leader, please be sure to schedule a time to meet with the Membership Director Saehee Perez ([email protected]) and Programs Director Mehreen Syed ([email protected]) once Saehee has reached out. With Convention nearing, it’s necessary that chapters are rechartered in order to receive the proper amount of votes.
Chapter Email Redirectors
We are supporting teen chapters by offering an email redirect. We can give your chapter an email address at our @vateendems.org domain, and any emails directed to that email address will be sent to your inbox. This is not a separate email account, it merely forwards emails to your regular account and looks more professional. If you or your chapter is interested in building a website, please contact our chair at [email protected].
Issue Committees
The Teen Caucus is starting issue committees so that everybody can get involved directly in the legislative process. We want to make sure that teen voices and ideas are heard and acted upon to the fullest extent! If you are interested in policy creation and innovation, sign up for an issue committee before March 15th!
The interest form link is linked here!
Internships
We are also excited to inform you all that we have compiled a list of internships for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General Campaigns across Virginia. Click here to access the document.
If you have any questions regarding the internship opportunities, please email our Programs Director at [email protected].
VAYD Teen Caucus in the News
- Washington Post – “Virginia set to pass historic bill giving students time off to protest — because teen Republicans and Democrats teamed up to demand it.”
- Associated Press (originally published in Charlottesville Daily Progress, republished in over 20 newspapers around the world) – Local Student Helps Affect Policy Change
- FOX 5 DC – Virginia teens push for excused school absence to protest
- Falls Church News-Press – Marshall High Junior Leads Statewide Effort to Allow Student Civic Absences
- NBC 29 WVIR – WAHS senior testifies to Virginia Senate sub-committee
- Bold Dominion Podcast – How are Virginia citizens and activist groups impacting bills this year?