PA Youth Vote (PYV) is a youth-centered organization promoting youth voter registration, education, and engagement in the five counties of Southeastern Pennsylvania, using peer-to-peer connections to encourage greater voter participation among public school youth from minority and/or economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. Our programs empower youth as civic actors by: 1) promoting peer-to-peer voter registration events; 2) supporting opportunities for youth to develop voter education programs to help their peers make informed voting decisions that impact their lives and their neighborhoods; 3) supporting students as change makers and advocates on the issues of importance to them; 4) providing support for teachers to provide ‘voter participation’ programs in their classrooms; and 5) pressing school boards and legislators to adopt policies that promote and finance youth voter registration, education, and engagement.

Our three main areas of measurable growth in 2022 will be
1) Youth leadership and organizing
2) Educator professional development and advocacy
3) Policy change at the school district and state legislative levels

Through these goals we aim to change the culture and policy of youth civic engagement in the commonwealth.

Over the next year, we will:

1) Expand the Youth Voter Ambassador Program to all 5 Philadelphia area counties and beyond.
2) Help form high school voter engagement clubs in at least 70 schools.
3) Plan and implement a paid summer work program for at least 30 teens to learn community organizing and forum theater, culminating in a trip to the Harrisburg Capitol to lobby policymakers and stage a forum theater performance.
4) Grow our social media reach to 5,000 followers and maintain engaging youth-created content.
5) Create 15 new radio/podcast episodes, simulcast to 5 additional radio stations, and expand our podcast audience by 200%.