Last weekend, young leaders from across the state came together to celebrate their first year as the First Lady’s Youth Leadership Council (FLYLC). First Lady Glenna Bevin initiated the Council last spring with a focus on empowering youth in the improvement of policies and practices related to the child welfare system and helping more kids have a safe and loving home.

The FLYLC met with Glenda Wright, the president of Voices of the Commonwealth. Glenda shared her story of being in foster care and inspired the young leaders to continue to advocate for themselves while in care, as they age out, and beyond.

Representative Melinda Gibbons Prunty joined the Council for a luncheon to celebrate youth accomplishments—middle and high school graduation and becoming FLYLC alum—and 2017 policy wins. Representative Prunty co-sponsored House Bill 180 and House Bill 192 in the 2017 session, which both passed and were legislative items that the FLYLC youth supported.

We are honored to work with First Lady Glenna Bevin and the youth comprising her council. We thank Representative Prunty for listening to the youth’s stories and for her commitment to improving the child welfare system’s policies and practices that impact the FLYLC youth and so many other Kentucky children. We look forward to working with Mrs. Bevin and the FLYLC in the fall as they continue to be a voice for strengthening the child welfare system and making sure the best interest of the youth in the system is met.

 

Watch this video for a overview of the First Lady’s Youth Leadership Council’s first year.