21 years in the making and Out Youth is prepared to engage in a long-awaited transformation of organizational leadership. For over two decades, Out Youth has operated under a self-perpetuating Board of Directors structure. In our history, this structure has negatively fluctuated, undergoing various struggles with budget stability, Director membership, and Executive Director security. In these years, the Board remains a 100% adult lead group, majority cis-gender and is majority white; an improper reflection of the Youth served at Out Youth. It is within the interest of Out Youth development and future to transform our management structure so that youth of all backgrounds can actively participate in management with voting rights and justly represent the folks that walk through the doors every week.

Youth, community members, parents, social workers, counselors, interns, volunteers, and staff have all engaged in pushing for such reform at Out Youth. Through a vast array of independent studies and organizing processes, such constituents have constructed the legal and financial foreground to back the much-needed change for Out Youth governance. We are excited to inform the community that THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY to restructure Out Youth management to be actively youth inclusive and co-led to ensure intergenerational participation and collaboration.

However we need YOUR support to make this happen! So what’s stopping us from making this great step? Well one hurdle is standing in our way:
Lack of Board of Directors Cooperation. We’ve met, we’ve presented our ideas, legal, and financial evidence, and we’ve reached out with warm hands. We’ve been turned away and given inexcusable responses with little respect or value to the strategic planning folks on the ground have worked hard to conduct.

There are a couple of steps you can take as a stakeholder of Out Youth to make an impact.

*Stakeholder meaning anyone who’s gone through our doors, knows somebody who’s gone through our doors, funders, and all those invested in the well-being of Out Youth.

Steps of Action

1. IF YOU BELIEVE YOUTH ARE CAPABLE OF LEADING THE DEVELOPMENT OF BUDGET AND FINANCE, PROGRAMMING AND SERVICES, AND OPERATIONAL RESOURCES FOR OUT YOUTH IN COLLABORATION WITH ADULT ALLIES...SIGN THE PETITION! Show your support by giving us your signature.

2. *Read over our legal analysis of the Member-Vested Management! Educate yourself about what it means and why it’s a practical and crucial reform for Out Youth.

3. Contact us and help campaign for the change! Email gpadilla.austin@gmail.com

*Still wondering what a Member-Vested Management structure means?

Member-Vested Management refers to an alternative structure of governance for a Non-Profit 501(c)(3) corporation that can work in conjunction with or without a Board of Directors, qualified under the Texas Organizations Business Code. The traditional Board of Directors requires three members: a Board Chair, Secretary, and an additional Director. Additional members are usually elected and assigned to various committees according to that organization.

Member-Vested Management is similar, however it emphasizes community input and representation without the age and liability requirements of a self-perpetuating Board of Directors. Member-Vested Management can be tailored to the Non-profit corporation it serves. Those within the structure, members, can hold voting power that influence operations just as Directors of the Board have now.

There are two main steps that accomplish Member-Vested Management: 1) Board approval of an amendment to the Out Youth Articles of Incorporation to state we are Member-Vested, with subsequent submission of the amended articles to the Secretary of State, and 2) Community input into what the management structure will look like for Out Youth. Our core vision for such management is based on youth inclusion! With a Member-vested management structure, youth leaders, defined by community input, will engage in directing the future of their organization along side their adult allies. Beautiful, right?

For specific code, state statues, and general legal information into how this all works check out the link to our team’s critical analysis!

CLICK HERE: http://flavors.me/outyouth