Facilitating Meaningful Youth Input
Lessons from a Decade of Youth–Adult Partnership
Lesson 5:
The most valuable contribution adults make is designing the conditions for meaningful youth participation.
One of the most common misconceptions about youth engagement is that meaningful participation simply means asking young people what they think. While seeking youth input is important, it is only one part of the process. The quality of that input depends largely on how thoughtfully adults design the conditions for participation.
Youth bring lived experience, creativity, urgency, and perspectives adults often cannot see. Adults bring facilitation skills, institutional knowledge, technical expertise, and an understanding of how decisions are made. Meaningful youth engagement happens when those contributions complement one another.
After more than a decade of coordinating the work of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services DCFS Youth Advisory Boards, I have come to believe that the most valuable contribution adults make is not having the answers. It is designing processes that enable young people to discover and communicate their own.
Participation Begins Before the First Draft
Years ago, I realized that the Illinois DCFS Youth Advisory Board had outgrown its logo. It did not reflect who the youth had become, and it certainly wasn’t helping attract new members. We hired a graphic designer, who developed several concepts, and then invited the youth to provide feedback.
It quickly became apparent that we had skipped an important step. Like most people, the youth had plenty of experience responding to brands but little experience creating one. They needed to be introduced to what a brand is, how a logo fits within a broader brand identity, and how visual design communicates purpose, values, and personality. Without that shared understanding, the designer was looking for direction while the youth were simply reacting to someone else’s ideas.
Rather than continuing down that path, we paused the design process and shifted our approach. Before asking the youth to evaluate design concepts, we spent time exploring branding itself. What is a brand? What does a logo communicate? What should people think or feel when they encounter our Youth Advisory Board? Why would someone want to join? What words describe who we are? What symbols, colors, or images reflect our identity and purpose? Who are we trying to reach?
Once the youth had articulated their vision, the designer revised the concepts based on their input. The conversations became much more productive because the youth were no longer simply reacting to someone else’s ideas—they were evaluating how well each design reflected their vision. During that second round, the youth even developed and shared a graphic concept for the designer to build upon. They had become genuine collaborators in the creative process rather than reviewers of someone else’s work.
The final logo was stronger because we took the time to redesign the participation process—not just the logo.
Meaningful participation requires more than an invitation—it requires preparation. Adults don’t diminish youth voice by sharing knowledge and expertise. They strengthen it by giving young people the tools they need to make informed decisions.
Start with the Goal, Not the Solution
Adults often invite youth into conversations after the important decisions have already been made. We present a proposed solution and ask for feedback. While that can be useful, it limits the conversation.
Whenever possible, begin earlier. Help youth understand the problem before asking them to evaluate a solution. Ask questions such as:
What is the problem we’re trying to solve or outcome we’re trying to achieve?
Who is affected?
Why does this matter?
What would success look like?
What ideas should we explore?
Young people frequently identify needs and opportunities that adults overlook because they experience systems differently. Beginning with the end in mind creates space for genuine innovation rather than minor revisions to an adult-generated idea.
Provide the Information Needed for Good Decisions
Youth should not be expected to make informed recommendations without access to the same information adults use.
For many years, as part of our contract to coordinate the work of the Illinois DCFS Youth Advisory Boards, we partnered with Professor Anita Weinberg, J.D., and the Civitas ChildLaw Clinic at Loyola University Chicago. Before youth selected their annual priority initiatives, law student interns researched existing laws, regulations, pending legislation, and policy proposals, then presented that information in language the youth could understand.
Only then did the youth decide which issues they wanted to champion.
The partnership didn’t end there. As the youth prepared to meet with leaders from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and other policymakers, Anita continued to coach and advise them. She helped them understand the policy implications of their proposals, refine their messaging, anticipate difficult questions, and strengthen their presentations. During meetings, she amplified youth voices when appropriate while ensuring the young people remained the primary advocates for their own ideas.
The adults did not determine the priorities or speak for the youth. They shared knowledge, experience, and strategy so the youth could advocate more effectively for the priorities they had chosen.
Good Engagement Is Iterative
Meaningful participation rarely happens in a single meeting, nor does it always begin at the same stage.
Sometimes youth identify the problem or define the desired outcome before any work begins. Other times legislators ask for feedback on proposed legislation. A state agency such as DCFS may seek youth input on a draft policy or procedure. An organization may invite youth to review a curriculum, evaluate a training, test a new program, or respond to a communication campaign that is already underway.
There is no single correct point of entry. What matters is not simply that young people are invited to participate, but that they are given the context, information, and preparation necessary to provide meaningful input. Whether youth are helping shape an idea from the beginning or responding to work already underway, adult partners should equip them with the knowledge they need to understand the issues, ask informed questions, and offer thoughtful recommendations.
Good facilitators are also willing to pause and redesign the process when needed. As the logo experience demonstrated, recognizing that a process isn’t working—and adjusting it—is itself part of meaningful engagement.
Close the Feedback Loop
One of the fastest ways to discourage participation is to ask for input and never explain what happened next.
Youth deserve to know how their ideas influenced the final decision. If a recommendation was adopted, explain how it was implemented. If it wasn’t, explain why. Sometimes legal requirements, budget constraints, or organizational realities make certain ideas impossible. Honest communication builds trust and teaches young people how decisions are made.
People are much more likely to participate again when they know their voices were heard, respected, and thoughtfully considered.
Better Processes Produce Better Outcomes
Authentic youth engagement is not about adults stepping aside. It is about adults stepping into a different role.
The adult partner’s job isn’t to provide the answers. It is to design the conditions that allow young people to contribute meaningfully.
When adults intentionally provide the preparation, context, information, and support young people need, those strengths combine to produce better ideas, stronger decisions, and more effective advocacy than either group could achieve alone.
The goal is not simply to give young people a seat at the table. It is to ensure they are equipped to think critically, contribute confidently, make informed decisions, and influence the policies, programs, and systems that affect their lives.
That is authentic youth-adult partnership.