By Andy Sevilla.
Kyle council members welcomed a new member to the dais on Jan. 7. Hays High senior Nikolas Fisher has taken his seat among the elected leaders and will help shape public policy in the city he calls home.
For the 17-year-old Hays High School student council president, taking a seat on the dais is more than just an opportunity to participate in public policy discussions, but a commitment to advocate for and represent the city’s youth.
“I learned a lot in my first meeting,” Fisher said. “It was an eye-opening experience, seeing how much goes on in, what I consider, a small town. Everything that happens is a lot.”
“I was nervous – I mean it was my first meeting, (but) it felt good. It was nice to sit up there and hopefully I can do the youth of Kyle a good job representing them,” he said.
At top, Hays High senior Nikolas Fisher, 17, sits on the dais with Kyle mayor Lucy Johnson. Fisher was selected by the Kyle Area Youth Advisory Council (KAYAC) to serve as their liaison to the council. (Photo by Andy Sevilla) |
The Kyle Area Youth Advisory Committee (KAYAC), a city-sponsored group comprised of a combined 16 students from Hays and Lehman High Schools tasked with providing recommendations on city policy decisions, selected Fisher as the youth’s representative on the council.
Though Fisher has joined council members on the dais, he is only an “honorary” member and cannot cast a vote nor can he participate in council executive sessions – the closed-door meetings where council members discuss personnel issues, litigation matters and real estate and financial incentives for businesses looking to come into the city.
“I was really excited that KAYAC was really getting off to a good start this year, and the members were really involved, the school board was getting involved, the superintendent was getting involved,” Kyle Mayor Lucy Johnson said. “… I really felt like, in terms of maximizing the impact, wouldn’t it be great to have a student member on the city council.”
Johnson said one of the inspirations for the program came from when the city, in the past, did “mock councils” with third graders. “They would run the meeting using Roberts Rules of Order (the rules that guide parliamentary procedure), have presentations from department heads at the city and take votes. And a lot of those items they were coming up with (were) pretty similar to what we actually discussed (on the dais)… which was great.”
Johnson said those mock councils taught her how sophisticated the youth can be and she wanted to ensure they “have a big voice in the community.”
Fisher, who was recommended to serve on KAYAC by his school principal, said he doesn’t have any specific causes to bring to the table, “but I’m excited and ready to comment and provide the youth’s input on any issues that arise.”
“I’m actually looking forward to, 72-hours in advance (of the council meeting), getting the agenda and looking through it and say ‘ok, this pertains to us,’ and then taking it back to school” to solicit students’ comments and opinions, Fisher said. “So I’m really planning more on being in an advisory role, than bringing issues up.”
Sarah Watson, Kyle’s recreation program coordinator and city staff liaison to KAYAC, said the group is in the midst of developing a youth survey to send to high school students that seeks input “what issues they see around town, and what they want to see improvements on. How they can really take ownership in the city.”
“I think once we get that, then we’ll be able to go forward and Nik (Fisher) will serve a vital road going between the youth council and the city council; that way we can make a full encompassing community,” Watson said.
Said Fisher, “I would like to learn as much as I can, just really take it all in. It’s good to be in a position where I can represent people and see how that works… I’m ready and excited to do what I can.”
