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Four Saratoga teenagers join Saratoga Youth Commission

By Shannon Burkey

Four Saratoga teens, each with a desire to be more involved in the city's youth issues, have been appointed to join nine veterans on the Saratoga Youth Commission.

The new members will be sworn in by the city council on June 6 for two- year terms.

New commissioners Jacob Baker, Lauren Tang, Kayvon Rezaii and Sameer Kausar will take over for commissioners Tami Maltiel, Steven Shephard, Amit Arunkumar, Michael Byrne and Pratik Pramanik, who are all graduating from high school and will be attending college in the fall. Commissioner Elli Rezaii was re-appointed to her third term.

The commission serves as a liaison between the city council and the teen community. The commission also plans educational and entertainment events, such as a teen hangout night and a teen inspiration lecture series, and performs community service.

"This is a great way for them to get an introduction to government. They learn about the political process and work together with people they may not have known previously," said Adam Henig, city staff liaison to the commission.

Henig said commissioners also learn about marketing, making presentations, voting and working with city council members and other community leaders.

Jacob, who will be a sophomore at Bellarmine College Preparatory in the fall, has a long list of school and community involvement, including the speech and debate team, cross country, Boy Scouts, synagogue youth group and the Bellarmine Young Democrats.

Jacob's brother served on the commission, and his friend, Maltiel, is finishing her last term. Watching them gave him a feeling for what the commission was all about.

"The commission really drums up civic involvement for youths in Saratoga and gives them something to do," he said.

This past year, Jacob attended a lecture on the genocide in Darfur; the lecture was hosted by the commission.

"I like the idea of the speaker series but would like to add more speakers so people know the commission has an intelligent side to it," he said.

Like Jacob, Kayvon became interested in the commission after someone he knew joined. Kayvon will join his sister Elli on the commission.

Kayvon will be an eighth-grader at Redwood Middle School in the fall and has served as a class representative for the past two years. He is also a member of the basketball, soccer and track teams.

"I want to be a role model for youth and give them an opportunity and place to have fun," he said.

Lauren will enter the ninth grade at Lynbrook High School next fall and is currently student council vice president, yearbook designer, a member of the National Junior Honor Society and a member of the cross country, volleyball and track teams.

She said she is excited about being involved in her community and is looking forward to doing outreach to a wider circle of the community's teens.

Sameer will be an eighth-grader at Miller Middle School in the fall and, like Lauren, he said he would like to do outreach to more of the city's teens. Sameer said before he started looking into joining the commission, he was not aware of all the events it offered, and he is sure many of the students at his school are in the same position. As a commissioner, he would like to help change that.

Elli, who will be a senior at Saratoga High School next fall, will begin her fifth year on the commission. She said the commission is important to the community because it brings the city's youth together and sets them up for a better future.

"It's not every day you find a group of teenagers that want to work with their community and want to make it a better place," she said. "There is a satisfaction you get when you join the commission that you have made a difference and have made yourself a better person."

Commissioners must attend monthly meetings and sponsored events, and serve on at least two committees each year. According to Henig, about 90 percent of the commissioners reapply once their term is up.

Maltiel, the commission chairwoman, said leaving is going to be difficult for her because the commission has been such a big part of her life for the past five years. But she has a bit of advice to the new members before she leaves for Syracuse University.

"Get involved. Find your own way on the commission and figure out how it works and what you want to do on it because it will be an important part of your life," she said.