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Next Meeting:
|
February 16,, Thurs 6pm at Jay Leff's House - 439 South
Willard St.. |
Burlington Student Elected to Board of Directors of
National Youth Rights Association
Jay Leff, a senior at Burlington High School, was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Youth Rights Association (NYRA) on August 6, 2005 at NYRA's annual meeting in New York City.
In a competitive race with 14 candidates vying for 9 board positions, Leff received the second highest number of votes.
Leff currently serves as the President of the Vermont Chapter of NYRA.
In Vermont the group has been working on
lowering the voting age and the drinking age. He co-founded Youth For
Democracy, which works to foster a dialogue
between youth and politicians, and also serves as the youth police commissioner
in the city of Burlington.
The National Youth Rights Association is dedicated to defending the civil
and human rights of young people in the
United States. We are comprised of over 5,000 members across the country.
We believe certain basic rights are intrinsic parts of American citizenship
and transcend age or status limits. As the world's leading democracy,
the United States should not lag behind other nations in granting first-class
citizenship to its young people.
NYRA aims to achieve its goals through educating people about youth rights, working with public officials to devise fitting policy solutions to problems affecting young people and empowering young people to work on their own behalf.
Vermont Chapter Off To A Good Start
In a remarkably short period of time, NYRA Vermont has established itself as being among NYRA's most professional and well organized chapters. The chapter held its first meeting on January 9th at the Fletcher Free Library. This well attended meeting resulted in the passage of bylaws and the election of officers. Ken Boring was elected President, Jay Leff Vice President, Hardy Machia Secretary, Kevin Ryan Treasurer, and Aaron Voldman will serve as High School Outreach Coordinator.
Many of you may know Ken from his frequent contributions
to NYRA's web forums and Hardy from his bid for Vermont Governor. Due
to the hard work of the chapter's officers, and NYRA Media Director Chanc
Amis, the chapter has already received some significant attention in the
media. An article by Ken Picard in Seven
Days outlines the chapter's ideas and ambitions. NYRA-Vermont officials
Jay Leff and Hardy Machia appeared on channel 17 public access to discuss
youth rights. By all accounts the appearance went well, their next meeting
was plugged and they responded professionally to all the questions. Their
web page is frequently updated
and saturated with useful, interesting information regarding the chapter
and its activities. All NYRA members, especially those living in Vermont
are encouraged to check it out.
NYRA Quote of the Month
"No guarantees come with children's liberation. But neither the promise of great benefits to all nor the prediction of great difficulties ahead can serve as the reason for granting or denying rights to children. Rights will be granted because without them children are incapacitated, oppressed, and abused."
- Richard Farson "Birthrights"