IV 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1044 

Expressing support for the designation of February 2024 as ‘‘National Youth 

Leadership Month’’. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 29, 2024 

Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin (for herself, Ms. MACE, Mr. SOTO, Mr. BACON, Mr. 

KILMER, Mr. ALLRED, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. FROST, and Ms. 

CROCKETT) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the designation of February 2024 

as ‘‘National Youth Leadership Month’’. 

Whereas youth are children and adolescents as well as those 

transitioning into early adulthood; 

Whereas while it is essential that we, as adults, care for our 

youth, it is also our responsibility to ensure that the 

youth are among today’s leaders and are well prepared 

to lead future generations; 

Whereas, as of 2020, 73,106,000 Americans were under 18 

years of age, comprising 22.1 percent of the United 

States population; 

Whereas it is especially critical that youth voices are uplifted 

in policy conversations because despite the fact that 


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•HRES 1044 IH 

youth do not have the right to vote in elections, each policy enacted by their representatives impacts them; 

Whereas effective policymaking requires a clear and nuanced 

understanding of the problems and of the context within 

which policy solutions will take place; 

Whereas only youth can speak firsthand and authoritatively 

on their own lived experiences; 

Whereas history has reflected that youth have been at the 

vanguard of every social movement; 

Whereas youth are capable of engaging in substantive and 

productive discussions of issues and as partners in the 

policymaking process; 

Whereas the nuanced perspectives that youth can offer based 

on their aforementioned experiences are critical to 

crafting effective policies that avoid unintended consequences; 

Whereas policies that impact youth are incomplete and insufficient if youth are not authentically engaged in the policymaking process; 

Whereas specifically youth who are or have been involved in 

the child welfare, foster care, and youth justice systems 

have crucial firsthand perspectives about the functioning 

of those systems and how they impact youth and families; 

Whereas when youth are empowered to lead throughout their 

formative years, they develop a strong sense of identity 

and establish themselves as engaged civic participants, 

taking pride and ownership of their impact as leaders; 

Whereas likewise, as youth serve in leadership roles, they can 

take pride in their stewardship and the work of others 

whom they have lead; 


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•HRES 1044 IH 

Whereas these benefits are especially meaningful for youth 

from communities that have been historically excluded 

from leadership roles, including youth of color, Native 

youth, LGBTQ+ youth, youth from religious minorities, 

poor youth, youth with disabilities, and youth in foster 

care; 

Whereas the youth in the aforementioned groups represent 

hundreds of thousands of perspectives that are critically 

needed in policy and other discussions about their present 

situations but also their future; 

Whereas in the context of child welfare, authentic youth engagement is an approach that prioritizes elevating youth 

to be leaders in shaping their lives and directing their futures alongside the adults in their communities and the 

child welfare workforce; 

Whereas for example, there are 407,000 youth in foster care 

on any given day, many of whom could benefit from efforts to develop and empower them to be leaders; 

Whereas child welfare experts agree that implementing authentic youth engagement for the purposes of case planning, court processes, and the implementation of youth 

advisory boards is a best practice that can lead to markedly better outcomes for youth within the child welfare 

system as well as positive systems changes overall; 

Whereas, as stated in the academic article, The Need to 

Study Leadership in Adolescents, that ‘‘despite the benefits of youth leadership, the subject is critically understudied’’; 

Whereas conducting further empirical research on youth leadership would yield immediate application and benefits for 


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•HRES 1044 IH 

policymakers, educators, child welfare professionals, parents, and employers, and youths themselves; and 

Whereas we support designating February 2024 as ‘‘National 

Youth Leadership Month’’ to uplift current youth leaders, 

encourage future youth leaders, and, support those empowering youth leaders: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) supports the designation of a ‘‘National 

3 Youth Leadership Month’’; 

4 (2) encourages Congress to implement policies 

5 to elevate youth voices to lead, support youth leader6 ship development opportunities, and encourage addi7 tional research on youth leadership; 

8 (3) honors the work of adults that help cul9 tivate youth leadership; and 

10 (4) honors the dedication of youth leaders who 

11 advocate for the interest of their generation and fu12 ture generations. 

Æ 


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