Youth Commission Meeting June 23, 2026

All right, we're gonna um I would like to call to order uh the meeting of the Dartmouth Youth Commission. I would I am opening this meeting which has been duly posted in accordance with the state law and the town of Dartmouth by law on Wednesday. Oh, yep. Tuesday, June 23rd, um at 7:02 p.m. This meeting is being conducted remotely due to Governor Healey's ex execution on March 28, 2025

of a further extension of hybrid remote meeting options to municipalities, which legislation extended the option through June 30th, 2027. This is a public meeting held remotely through the Zoom application and is being recorded.

Because this is a remote meeting, all votes will be taken by roll call. I'd like to start the meeting with a roll call. Commissioner Moss here.

Commissioner Goldsby here.

Commissioner Savage here.

And Commissioner Mashado here. Um, okay. So, we have um a quorum uh which is great. We have four out of four members. Um okay. So um we're going to move to um so I had sent the meeting minutes out. Um so the next would be uh our meeting minutes from Janu our January meeting. Um so the next on the agenda is the approval of the of the meeting minutes. Um so

um do people need a moment to review them?

I cannot see you. So, if you get to say it out loud.

Oh, people have to acknowledge verbally.

I'm sorry.

Yeah. And I can't see you anyway. I can't see if you're nodding your heads.

Oh my goodness.

Okay. Are there any corrections to the meetings?

I don't have any.

No. No.

None.

No.

Okay. Um if none um the minutes are approved as presented.

Um yeah. Okay. Um so there's an agenda submitted. I'd like to follow the agenda that was sub um so we're going to follow the agenda and then but we can start by um having uh Dolores go over her report that was submitted and we can go from there.

All right. Thank you everybody. Thank you. Good evening commissioners. Um I did send out the report and I know it's going to be posted with the meeting u minute. Um it is quite long so I am not going to go over everything because it is a matter of public record so people can read over it. But um just to um do some highlights um what's been happening. So, um this is my report from

February 2026 until June because the month is almost over and I don't have anything scheduled as far as needing to be on my um report. So, um some of the highlights I did attend for the second year in a row there is a conference um um a youth um excuse me a youth conference that is held every year in Savannah, Georgia.

So, I did attend again this year. Um, it was wonderful. I did get some really good information and resources um that I'll be sharing a little later on. Um, I completed the year-long um, MMA suffix certificate and leadership government program. So, I started that in the fall.

Um, graduation was the beginning of this month. So, um, it was every Friday for well for the whole year. So, I went to that class for a whole year. So now um I have a certificate in leadership and management.

Um I'm sorry I was just trying to see what happened just then. Um so what else happened to Oh, just something to highlight. So this year I was able to um partner with the United Way. United Way reached out and asked if I would be willing to um have some non-p perishable bag lunches um to give out to Dartmouth students um for spring break. um they approached me a few years ago. Um it

just didn't work out. I wasn't able to do that. Um but this year I did jump on it. Um I requested 150 bags. Um and Chris, it's in my report so you don't have to write this out. All right. So um I requested 150 bag lunches um to be given out. Um I partnered with the Dartmouth um public library. So, um during spring break, um myself and um the substance use program coordinator,

um Rachel Deyo, we were at both branches of the library during lunchtime giving out the free non-p perishable lunches.

Um so, I wanted to report like how many I ended up giving out. So, give me a minute. So, we had 150 bags total. Um, I reached out to the schools first to see if they wanted to take some of the bags to give to the students before spring break so they could have it over the break. So, um, I did have a couple of the schools reach out um, requested some

of the bags. So, we did give those out.

So, throughout the library, we ended up giving out 89 bags. Um, 57 bags were distributed directly to the school. Um, we ended up leaving um, a few bags at both libraries in case families came in later and um, if the library staff um, encountered families that needed um, a non-p perishable bag, they can give them to them. And um, four bags were given out to our partner agency, the um,

community service outreach team um, got four bags. So, we got rid of all of the bag lunches and the families seemed to be really appreciative. I definitely will do it again next year. But while I was doing that, I also did um like a community service survey because I wanted to find out like what parents are looking for for their kids in the community. Um what services um they would like to see for themselves and

what type of um community programming um they were looking for. Um and um it was a short survey. I did it there and I also had the survey available for town meeting because I attended town meeting.

um recently and we did the surveys at town meeting so some people completed them there and also Dartmouth did a um what was it called um an academy I can't even think right now so if you're not what was it what was it called the academy the academy that they did the citizens academy Dartmouth did a citizens academy where I did a presentation so I did the survey there so um the big um what I

found out from the survey is They're really looking for more mental health resources, more like after school activities, um for the kids. Um also, um they were looking for some things on like vaping resources. Um also, what else they were looking for? I'm just trying to hit the highlights. Um things about grief support, um parent support groups. They really were looking to have something

like that. So, I did gather a lot of information. Um, I ended up doing a proposal, um, and I submitted it to the town administrator to see if possibly I can start this in the fall, if not the fall, maybe the winter to start doing some parent cafes, um, in Dartmouth um, and coming up with some topics based on what I received from the feedback from the surveys also. Um, and I got some of

this information when I attended the conference, but um, there is this program. It's a girls program. It's called Lean-In Girls. It's a free like mentoring program. So, um, I did the Zoom meeting on that. Um, got some more training on that. So, I did a proposal.

Um, I submitted it to the middle school to see if maybe we could do a pilot program maybe in the fall starting with the sixth graders. It would be like eight sessions. Um I'm hoping to possibly do it do it during the lunch um period for the kids. I know lunches are only like 22 minutes. So um each segment is about 45 minutes long. So um instead of eight sessions, it would be 16

because I would have to break the sessions up. So I did do a proposal. Um if that doesn't work out for the middle school, I had a conversation with our town administrator to see if we can just um have it as like an at the school type of um girls mentoring program for eight weeks at town hall. So um more to come for that. So probably the next time we

have the meeting I'll have um more of an update for that. Also um working with school on wheels again to do the backpacks for the fall for Dartmouth students. So I reached out to all of the schools to get the numbers of kids who could possibly benefit from having backpacks in the fall based on needs. I submitted that to school on wheel. So um I will be able to distribute those

backpacks in the fall. And there was something else I wanted just to hit the highlights. Hold on. Let me look at my report to make sure. Um oh another thing I also did too was um the hidden in plain sight. And I think some people know what that is, like the mock teenage bedroom to try um to find places where kids who could be using or possibly misusing um substances could be hiding

um drugs or things of that nature in their room. So, I did the grant through the DA's office and got awarded um some money to purchase um items to make our own hidden in plain sight so that we will have it with the youth advocates office so that we whenever um any entity requests that to be done, I have it on hand and can do that. Um one of my goals

is to possibly do it uh during school.

uh maybe like back to school or whenever school like starts up again in the fall or when they have a parent night or something to that nature to do it in the schools but also to do it in the community. So um if parents are requesting it that's something that I'm going to be able to do. So over the past probably month I've been buying items to make up my hidden in plain sight stash.

So very excited about that. Um I know thank you to the commissioners who agreed to help sponsor the um the day of kindness at Dartmouth High School. That was a huge success. Um the money that the youth commission gave um to um that um event um allowed them to purchase things so that um any um Dartmouth student who wanted to make like a friendship bracelet or whatever was able

to make it at no cost to the students.

Um, the campership.

So, um this year the camper ship, um is going to be um the Quinn playground um with the um public rec department here at the town of Dartmouth. So, we were able to sponsor 10 students this year because um just as a reminder, there is an anonymous donor who gave money um for camperships and the youth commission decides on what camp they want to use. um 20% of the

money that's in the fund is um used each year to fund the camp. So the amounts can be different each year. This year 20% of what was in the fund was um $1,250.

So that's what we were able to use. Um this camp was $125. So based on that, um we were able to pay for 10 kids. And I just submitted the invoice um to the parks and reccks department to pay for those 10 camper ships. And um there are 10 kids. They're going to be going various weeks um some week one all the way up to week seven. Um and I believe what parks and reccks department was

able to do was um the parent paid for a week and then they offered them a second week free based on the youth commission paying for it. So, um, the parents are able to get two weeks of camp for the price of one. So, that's something that was a little different this year and I was very happy. Um, a little different than the Y cuz the Y is just a supplement, but for this, the kids

actually got two weeks of camp for the price of one. So, that was phenomenal.

Um, I think that is the high. If there is anything that you saw on my report that you wanted me to talk more about, like I said, it's the meadow public record, but I just wanted to hit on the high notes. um about kind of what went on and what I'm working on moving forward um for the fall. Oh, the final thing that I do want to talk about, this

is my second year doing it. Um I got invited um by the Dartmouth Middle School to participate in their civics um showcase, the middle school civic showcase. So, I was one of the people who like voted on the different projects and the top I think three um winners ended up going to UMass Dartmouth to compete on the regional level. So, um that was fun. The projects are amazing.

These kids are phenomenal about the things that they're thinking about for the community and what they want to do to make their community better. whether it be um getting more nutritious lunches at school, having clean water, um having um more mental health services in the school. So, they were very insightful.

So, I did enjoy doing that again this year. So, I hope I'm able to do it again next year if they ask me to do it. But I think that is pretty much the highlight of everything that I've done in the past few months. Um yep. So, that would be the end of my report. Um, Commissioner Mashado.

Okay.

Um, just a question. Um, it sounds like the relationship with the schools is going much better from all the work that you've been doing with them.

Six years, girl.

It is. I I think um it it has and I will say um and being more open I I think I'm really trying to take bring more things to the school whether it be additional resources anytime that I find anything like free or low cost um that could be beneficial to youth or to families because as you know my role is the youth advocate but youth are attached to adults so if there are some needs for

adults I'm going to help with that too.

Um, so I think the collaborations have gotten a lot better. Um, oh, I forgot to say too that um I did some flyers up.

Um, I do support um, Dream Out Loud because that is a free program. So, I'm always pushing that and letting people know like that there are some free things to do. But, um, the MBTA summer schedule is going to be different um, because of people and everything else.

So, I did a modified um flyer and I sent it out to the schools and I think they sent it in an electronic backpack. I hope they did. And I put it on our Facebook page. So, for people who don't know, on Fridays you can ride um the NBA MBTA bus. I mean train for free. So, if you didn't know, there's free rides on Fridays.

So, I thought that would be really helpful especially for parents in the summer if they're trying to think of things to do for their kid. if you can just get on the bus for free and go to Boston or wherever you want to go and walk around or do something that's low cost, you don't have to worry about paying for um a train ticket. So, but the relationships have gotten a lot

better. I think um knowing that it's I can't solve everyone's problems, but I do try to point people in the right direction. Uh my job is not to provide like a direct service. It's more so to um guide people and connect them to services, supports, and referrals.

though it has. But thank you, Commissioner Mashado.

Great.

All right. Um, so are there any um is there anything that the commission um would like to any comments or announcements from the commissioners?

Anything you'd like to bring up?

I just have a comment. It seems like you've been extremely busy, Dolores. It looks like a lot a lot. I mean, it's not that like it was light before, but like it's it's an exhaustive list. Um, so thank you for doing all of that.

Thank you. And I try like each year like I have on um like one of my goals is to try to do something different each year.

So I was very happy that I was able to do the bag lunches. I will say I was a little overwhelmed. I mean, in the kudos to the United Way and Hunger Heroes, I have to give them a shout out. Um, so they delivered the 150 bags to the office. I think I might have been I was maybe at the conference and I came back and they were banana boxes. They were

like almost stacked to the there were so many boxes. It was crazy. I couldn't believe it. So, um, logistically, I've got to do something different about that next year as far as where I'm going to keep those. Um, but the community partners have been great. School on Wheels have been super phenomenal. Um each year with backpacks and like if I give them a list and give them a number

I always get the backpacks for the kids.

So, um yeah, I mean I think after almost six years it's gotten a little better because the flow and I try to add something different every year and like you said um in the commissioner go I'm going to try to um one of my goals for the upcoming year is to do like the girl empowerment um mentoring program. So that am super excited about that. And um someone approached me and asked me about

doing a program for boys, which I have no problem doing. I just have to find something that's free or low cost because um my budget is so small that I really don't have the resources to um pay for things like that unless I get a grant. Um this program, this girl's program is completely free. The materials, everything. I just have to make copies, but everything they provide is free. So um we're going to try to do

this as a pilot. if it's successful and I'm able to maybe well I can't modify it because it's copyrighted but to maybe try to find something um for boys I definitely would want to do that but would like to start with the young girls first especially the sixth graders you know trying to get girls to um have more um positive images of themselves um to be able to speak up speak out without

fear of AB and C um how to form friendships how to um identify toxic relationship ships and how to get out of those things. So, I'm really looking forward to that. If I'm not able to do it through the schools because of logistics, I definitely will be doing it at town hall. So, like I said, more information to come whenever we have our next meeting.

That's great. Thank you.

No problem. Thank you.

Any other comments or anything from the commissioners? I'd like to say something. Yeah, that does sound like a lot that has you've been doing. Um, I was a part of the citizens academy and that was really Yeah, that was really helpful to to see uh well all the departments but also yours and just learning more about it and I think the the citizens the the other people in the

the room um really got a lot out of that too. I liked that you brought a lot of materials interactive and very informative.

Thank you, Commissioner Savage. And I think it was so successful that they definitely want to do another citizens academy um because it got a lot of positive feedback and I did enjoy it because I think um sometimes the people will see a title and they're like, well, what is it that she does? And it it is it could be kind of difficult because this position has evolved um since it's been in existence since I think like

1968 1969. So it has changed a lot over the course of what 56 57 58 whatever whatever that number is 50 plus years.

So it has changed and it does look different. Um more of like a community service type of position as opposed to it being more um hands-on as it was when it first started. So, you know, I'm glad that people got to ask questions and to understand and see some of the things that I do. I mean, there's a lot that I do that I don't talk about. It's just daily work. But, um,

I just wanted to highlight some of the major things that have been happening.

So, thank you, Commissioner Savage.

Any other announcements, comments? Any of the commission?

I know it's hard for you to see Commission Mashado. I'm sorry. I should have seen it. I should have said I should have said, "Okay, back to you."

I figured it out.

I was not a Mac girl historically.

Um, all right. So, there's nothing else.

Um, you know, it sounds it feels like we're at the end of our meeting. Um well actually um before that um wanting to schedule maybe the next couple of meetings to get them on the books so everyone can kind of be on the same page with it if that's okay.

Yes.

All right.

So it is June in January. So maybe sometime in the fall like September, October typically. We kind of meet usually around like in the fall. Um like October or November.

Yes. So maybe September, October because I'll probably have more information because that's that's when I start probably around October um with the holiday drive.

So and I think school and I think school starts in September. So that may be um a lot going on in September for people.

So, would October work for everybody? I know it's a long way off, but it would work for me.

Yep.

Let's see.

October.

What is today? Tuesday. I I'm losing track of time, so I apologize. I know we normally meet on Wednesday. So, is there a particular day of the week that doesn't work for people or that really works for people? cuz I know you try to be very um cognizant and respectful of people's time. So I don't know if Tuesday works, Wednesday work.

For me, Wednesday and Thursdays are the best days.

Okay.

You can make either day work, but I can't make the 21st.

And I wouldn't be able to do the 21st anyway because I have um human rights commission on the third Wednesdays of the month. Okay. So, I'm already committed.

What about the 7th or the 14th?

I'm available the seventh.

I think the 7th is good.

7th.

Okay.

Okay. All right. So, we'll do 107 at 700 p.m.

Okay.

Is it still on Zoom? like do we have to go like is there a time that we'd have to do in person?

So, I am not sure yet, Commissioner Meadows. We haven't gotten any directives from um Governor Healey's office. So, I don't know if they're going to extend the hybrid model or not.

So, that's Well, that is a good question. If they don't extend the hybrid model, then we would have to do an in-person meeting at town hall.

So, my little thing that I said was June 2027.

Oh my god, this is 202. Okay, so we're good.

Yeah. So, we have at least another year.

Okay. I'm sorry.

Yes, it was extended. Yeah.

Okay. I was getting nervous too, Commissioner Madison. I'm like, "Oh my gosh, we hadn't heard anything yet." So, we probably, if that's the case, and I'm thinking we probably before the fall, we'll hear something from the governor's office. So, we're good until June of next year. Okay. All right. Thank you, Commissioner Mashado. We're clarifying that. I know. I was panicking, too.

No, you're we're good for another year, though.

Yeah. So, do we want to just um do October and maybe the next meeting or at the October meeting schedule the one for um I'm sorry my husband is blending stuff in the background so yes I'm sorry. Okay. Um I'm talking so I'm sorry.

Yeah, we could do October and then that way I know you usually get really busy that time of year too. So, I know last year like if there's anything that we need to meet about like sooner, we could always look into like doing that and if not, you know, go into January, but I know I feel like in the fall meeting you had a lot to to go on and coordinate last year. So,

yeah. So, that's when I start the holiday drive. So, then that'd be more information and I'll have more information hopefully about um the um the mentoring program and other things that have been going on too and the hidden in plain sight. So, that might be something Well, we can talk about that in my public. Yeah.

Yeah. And didn't you say too you were thinking for the holiday drive to do something like adopt a family or something like that?

Yes, that is still on my agenda to do that. Um I just haven't figured out exactly how to do that yet. I know that um the director of library services um Dina St. Pierre, she is phenomenal and she's willing to partner with the youth commission to figure out um if maybe the library can be the site like we can pull families names. So this is this is the kind of vision I have right

now. Um so what we did this holiday season is a little different than we've done before. Um, we always do filibust um work in collaboration with the Dartmouth Police Department and usually that um is for our younger kids because people usually buy gifts for younger kids and we always um lack getting items for older kids. So um we had town um town staff um people who work for the

town of Dartmouth who um volunteered to sponsor some of the older kids. So that was phenomenal. all the kids got sponsored. Um, and I got a lot of great feedback. They want to do that again, but now I want to extend it to families.

So, I think what I want to do is to continue to do the older youth utilizing um town employees and families just um only um if community members would like to sponsor a family, they can do that. I am not quite ready to have community members sponsor youth because what if they just fall through or what? I don't I don't want a youth to be disappointed.

Um not saying that people don't have good intentions. They could, but I would rather have um community members maybe sponsor like the the older people in the family, maybe the parents or whatnot, and have a short list of things that they would like to have, maybe gift cards or whatever, and have the community do that. And right now, just keep sponsoring of the youth to um people that I know I can reach out to

and say, "Hey, you haven't done A, B, and C." But that can change. that can really change. Um, if the commissioners have ideas about how to do this, that would be great. Um, I just don't want to put that out there and then the kids don't get sponsored and then, you know, I don't want to disappoint any kids. I don't want to disappoint families either, but I definitely don't want to get disappoint kids. So, maybe

we can do the trial run to do it that way. And if it seems to be successful or or people are engaged in doing that, then maybe the following year I maybe have um a subset of kids and just the whole family that people can sponsor. I know child and family used to and they still do it, but they have that down to a science and they have a whole bunch of

people working to do that. It's just me.

So he's having a hard one person. But that may be something um that we could talk about in October, too. If um if there's a few commissioners who like want to kind of work on this project with me, that would be great. I mean, I don't want to put any pressure on anyone. If you want to think of some ideas, um but because I am the only one that doing it, I just have to make sure

I keep it contained if it's just me.

So, yeah, that's a good topic. I would definitely like wouldn't mind helping because obviously I have a little bit of inside info from um Yes. that place.

Yeah. And I just sponsored a family um through my work last year too. So I kind of know like what what they required of usually it's like requirements like you have to give a gift card, you have to do this and specific and maybe that's how we would do that then just to do for that purpose if we're sponsoring a family just to do like a gift do gift cards. I think I may

be I don't want to say safe but just yeah it has to be some type of guidelines and I'm trying to work on that. So that might be and um like I said the library was really open to doing it. So we could do I don't want to say I don't when I talk about holiday giving I say holiday I don't say Christmas I celebrate Christmas but everyone doesn't celebrate Christmas so

I use the term holiday. Um we used a chimney um we had the chimney of giving so that's what we did. So if we are utilizing the library it would be something in that nature. wouldn't be a tree, but it would be something that um maybe symbolizes um like winter or um whether it be whatever symbolizes winter or snowman that can whatever. I don't really care what we do. But I definitely

don't want to do a Christmas tree because I want to be very inclusive of other people. Um but yeah, so I mean I think October will give us time to kind of think about it. Um, if I start sending things out, if we're meeting the beginning of October, that is great because I usually start sending out requests probably around um the end of October, the beginning of November, giving people about four to

six weeks to kind of work on some things. So, that would give us ideas and um a little lee room to leeway to kind of work on this. So, all right. Yeah.

Thank you. Thank you for the ideas.

All right. So, we got the meeting scheduled. Okay. Um, so if nothing else, then um, we're at the end of our meeting. So, can I get a motion to adjourn the meeting?

Motion to adjurnn.

Um, can can I have a second? Motion to adjurnn.

I second that motion.

All those in favor?

Hi.

Hi.