1 Minutes of the City of Laguna Niguel Youth

MINUTES OF THE CITY OF LAGUNA NIGUEL YOUTH COMMITTEE MEETING November 5, 2020 @ 7:00 p.m. Via Zoom

CALL TO ORDER by Recreation Supervisor, Gretchen Malcolm at 7:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL by Recreation Supervisor, Gretchen Malcolm

Committee Members Present: Courtney Bunge, Nick Drossel, Viuna Farschian, Emily Guilfoyle, Jason Liu, Cade Mahaffey, Skylar Neeve, Zoe Neeve, Andrew Nesson, John Reid, Katie Root, Disha Surana, Jackson Tremper, Amanda Zidron

Committee Members Absent: Maeve Burdian

Staff Present: Gretchen Malcolm, Recreation Supervisor Michelle Newton, Recreation Coordinator Ron Rivera, Interim Parks & Recreation Director

Council Liaisons Present: Council Member Elaine Gennawey Council Member John Mark Jennings

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE led by Recreation Supervisor, Gretchen Malcolm

PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS – There were no public communications.

1. ADMINISTRATION

A. Election of Youth Committee Chair and Vice Chair for the 2020/20201 School Year

Recreation Supervisor Gretchen Malcolm reviewed the election process and conducted the election for Youth Committee Chair.

Committee Member Reid nominated Nick Drossel, and there were no other nominations. A MOTION was made by John Reid and seconded by Amanda Zidron to elect Nick Drossel as Chair. Committee Member Drossel was elected Chair on a unanimous vote.

Chair Nick Drossel nominated John Reid, and Emily Guilfoyle nominated herself. A MOTION was made by Nick Drossel and seconded by Andrew Nesson to nominate John Reid as Vice Chair. A SECOND MOTION was made by Emily Guilfoyle and seconded by John Reid to nominate Emily

Guilfoyle as Vice Chair. Motion carried with eight Committee Members voting for John Reid as Vice Chair, 5 Committee Members voting for Emily Guilfoyle, and one abstained.

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

A. Minutes of the Regular Youth Committee Meeting of October 1, 2020

Chairman Nick Drossel clarified a statement he made at the last meeting identifying John Reid as Jack. A MOTION was made by Committee Member John Reid to approve the minutes as corrected, seconded by Committee Member Emily Guilfoyle. Motion carried on a unanimous vote.

3. YOUTH COMMITTEE PROJECT REVIEW AND DISCUSSION

A. Youth Committee Survey

Recreation Supervisor Gretchen Malcolm reviewed the staff report, and survey results were included in the packet for Committee Members’ reference.

B. Youth Committee Subcommittees

Recreation Supervisor Malcolm reviewed the staff report and clarified that up to four members can be part of each subcommittee. The Committee reviewed the suggested subcommittees that focus on a specific event and collaborate on related tasks outside of Committee meetings. The following subcommittees were established with the following Committee Members: 1. Social Media Posts • Emily Guilfoyle • Katie Root • Disha Surana • Viuna Farshchian 2. Together4Teens • Amanda Zidron • Viuna Farshchian • Emily Guilfoyle

3. High School Job & College Fair • Skylar Neeve • John Reid • Jackson Tremper • Jason Liu

4. Pizza with Police • Skylar Neeve • Cade Mahaffey • John Reid • Nick Drossel

5. Entrepreneur Workshop • Amanda Zidron • Jackson Tremper • Andrew Nesson • Zoe Neeve

6. Songs for Seniors • Courtney Bunge • Nick Drossel • John Reid • Maeve Burdian

C. Together4Teens Virtual Event for Mental Wellness

Lauren Gallegos, Director of Prevention at the Wellness and Prevention Center, a nonprofit located in San Clemente, summarized the event last year. She explained that the virtual event includes workshops for parents and teens focused on this year’s theme, Past, Present, and Future. The purpose of the event is to bring about awareness of the struggles and pressures teens face today and provide resources for both parents and teens.

The event will take place on November 10, 11, & 12, 2020, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. This year’s event will consist of virtual workshops for parents on Zoom and workshops for teens held on Instagram. In addition to the live postings on Instagram, there will be postings on IGTV, interactive scavenger hunts, and other activities to involve teens. She introduced an app for youth to access mental health services from their phones. Demos will be available throughout the event.

Committee Members were asked to volunteer to help host some of the live presentations, which Committee Member Viuna Farshchian offered to do. Other needs include promoting the event via Instagram and assisting in obtaining donations for give-a-ways to increase attendance. Ms. Gallegos also asked that Committee Members follow the Instagram account @together4teens and share it with others.

Vice Chair, John Reid, requested the event flyer be shared as a jpg to share with the school for morning announcements. All interested teens should follow

the Instagram account to participate and don’t need to sign up. Ms. Gallegos mentioned parents need to register to receive the Zoom link to ensure only registered participants join in on the workshops. Lastly, Lauren acknowledged the Youth Committee’s interest in focusing on mental health and suicide prevention and offered assistance in providing resources as may be needed.

Chair Nick Drossel indicated that he would work with Vice Chair John Reid to add the event to the weekly announcements at Dana Hills High School and suggested that others do the same for their schools.

COMMITTEE MEMBER, CITY COUNCIL AND STAFF COMMENTS

Vice Chair John Reid requested an item be added to the agenda next month to discuss the possibility of the Committee holding a virtual envioronmental awareness event.

Council Member John Mark Jennings shared his pleasure in serving as Council Liaison to the Youth Committee these last four years. With his City Council term ending in December, he thanked staff and everyone for the work done over this period.

Council Member Elaine Gennawey was pleased that the Committee developed a work plan for this year’s activities. She emphasized the Committee's need to concentrate on marketing and share the information with their peers. She also let the Committee Members know that the City would be holding a Veterans Day Celebration virtually on November 11, 2020 and encouraged them to attend live on Facebook.

Interim Parks & Recreation Director, Ron Rivera, shared with the Committee that the City of Laguna Niguel’s YouTube channel has a dedicated channel for past Veterans Day Celebrations. Interim Director Rivera encouraged Committee members to view the videos and gain insight into our country's valuable contributions. He also shared with the Committee that the Sea Country Senior & Community Center has a Chalk-Wall outside where the community can leave Veterans' messages, which will also be shared virtually. In preparation for the next meeting, Interim Director Rivera suggested subcommittees meet and to bring back a report to share in December. He recommended that Committee Members reach out to Recreation Supervisor Gretchen Malcolm for questions and support.

Recreation Supervisor Malcolm mentioned to the Committee that she would be sending out a copy of last year’s bio for Committee members to review. She asked that they follow the existing format and prepare/update their information accordingly. Individual pictures are also needed. If necessary, she can coordinate photos at the Crown Valley Amphitheater.

ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Committee, Chair Drossel adjourned the meeting at 7:51 p.m. to the next Regular Youth Committee Meeting to be held virtually via Zoom on December 8, 2020, at 7:00 p.m.