Appleton, Wisconsin: 4th Grade Classroom (VIRTUAL) Janet Berry Elementary. YEP! partnered with the University of Minnesota graduate students and Janet Berry Elementary school to bring two lessons on Urban Planning. The class focused on the overview of planning, housing, and historic preservation. Students were asked to draw their favorite type of housing to learn about cities ensuring that there is a mix of housing available to all, then students were asked to imagine what would their school be turned into in 50 years if it were no longer a school, what type of reuse could they see and what would they keep and not keep in the school, they then designed a historical marker plaque that talked about the school.

Winchester, MA - Winchester Public Schools
Middle and High School Classrooms - "School Transportation Planning + Family Transportation Planning"

Proposed Youth Engagement Workshop - "Engaging Youth in Evolving Metropolitan Environments" partnership with the Mayor's Office of Houston focused on their Strategic Plan "Texas Children in Nature"! This event was canceled due to the pandemic.

YEP! was asked to come and teach the 5th grade class at Richardson Elementary School during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, participated in a word search, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

Partnership with the APA MN Chapter Diversity & Equity Committee and Highland Park Middle School Planning Day. YEP! and our partners taught 8th-grade students at Highland Park Middle School about urban planning. Students learned about all of the types of urban planning, participated in a Marshmallow Challenge to build the tallest tower using marshmallows, sticks, and tape with teams then got to participate in community building in using post-it notes to list the opportunities and challenges their community faces in the area, we then ended with a discussion about community engagement and how to get involved with their community.

Winchester, MA - Winchester Public Schools
Middle and High School Classrooms - "School Transportation Planning + Family Transportation Planning"

Minneapolis, MN - Neighbors for More Neighbors - Open Streets Festival Youth Engagement Event focused on creating housing options for all with a chalk art activity for youth! YEP! was asked to partner with this organization to bring awareness to housing choices in the Minneapolis neighborhood during a street fair. YEP! shared a booth with Neighbors for More Neighbors and asked youth walking by to imagine what type of neighborhood they wanted to see and had to choose different types of housing from single-family homes, to condos, to apartments, to townhomes, to rowhomes, and then draw it on the street using chalk. We asked to have a certain amount of each type of housing in the neighborhood explaining that a healthy neighbor has lots of housing choices!


"Neighbors for More Neighbors, and me in particular, really appreciated having your help yesterday. Your youth engagement skills definitely increased our neighborhood's rate of growth and made it a heck of a lot more exciting place to live." ~David Wade, Neighbor for More Neighbors Director

St. Paul, MN - Metropolitan Council and St. Paul Academy Earth Day Event
Metropolitan Council planners hosted youth 6-8th grade youth emphasizing the work planners do at the Council and how that benefits the environment and climate change through policy and planning.

Youth Engagement Workshop - Larkin Street Youth Services Center. Young leaders build stronger communities! This interactive workshop emphasized the importance of youth engagement, provided hands-on activities focused on involvement and education, and having an open dialogue with a group of youth leaders working to end youth homelessness.

Girls, Inc - Youth Engagement Workshop - "Girls Who Plan" initiative with the Oakland Alliance Academy 8th grade girls. YEP! partnered with the global organization Girls, Inc to teach 8th grade girls about urban planning. The students learned about the different types of planning, how cities are created, how to use their voice to create change in their communities, and participated in creating memories through storytelling using artistic odds and ends to create a childhood memory and also participated in creating a city by getting into groups and drawing the framework of their city on poster board, deciding on a vision for their city, and then placing their sculptural childhood memories onto the poster board to act as a sculpture park.

University of Minnesota - Mankato - Lecture Youth Engagement and the Planning Process. YEP! was asked to come and speak to the undergraduate students about the profession of planning and the importance of youth engagement.

University of Minnesota - Public Participation Graduate Class - Lecture Youth Engagement. YEP! was asked to come and speak to the undergraduate students about the profession of planning and the importance of youth engagement.

North St. Paul, Minnesota: 5th Grade Classrooms. YEP! was asked to come and teach the 5th grade class at Richardson Elementary School during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, participated in a word search, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

Rochester, MN: APA Minnesota Chapter State Planning Conference - YEP! Event at the Boys and Girls Club of Rochester
Conference Brochure

YEP! Event at the Boys & Girls Club. YEP! partnered with the Boys and Girls Club and led 20 Minnesota planners to help teach urban planning to students at the Boys & Girls Club of Rochester during an interactive workshop that emphasized the importance of youth engagement, provided hands-on activities, focued on involvement and education; and volunteered with amazing inspiring young people of diverse Rochester neighborhoods.The younger students focused on completing an urban planning passport where they had to complete four activities learning about transportation, land use, urban design, and sustainability. The older students focused on community engagement tools and creating their own city in groups of 4 alongside urban planners from around the state to provide guidance.

Vision of Ramsey 2040 youth art activity (City of Ramsey, MN) The City of Ramsey asked YEP! to partner with them on an activity to incorporate into their 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The students participated in painting their vision for the City using canvas and paints along with a local artist to dream up their vision! Canvasses were then used in the Comprehensive Plan and displayed at City Hall.

St. Paul, MN Como Park High School: YEP! was asked to come and teach the 11th and 12th grade ESL classrooms at during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

St. Paul, MN LEAP High School: YEP! was asked to come and teach the 11-12th grade ESL classrooms at during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

St. Paul, MN Washington Technology Secondary School: YEP! was asked to come and teach the 9-11th grade ESL classrooms at during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

North St. Paul, Minnesota: 5th Grade Classrooms. YEP! was asked to come and teach the 5th-grade class at Richardson Elementary School during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, participated in a word search, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.

Appleton, WI: 4th Grade Classroom: YEP! was asked to come and teach the 4th grade class at during National Community Planning Month in October. The students learn about the overview of urban planning, key planning icons, planning history, zoning and land use, maps, participated in a word search, and then got to imagine their own city and use their creativity to draw what type of city they envision in the future.