If you are looking to be more civically engaged or become a youth leader, then Rhizome may be just the organization for you!
Rhizome is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, student-led, and community-focused organization for high-schoolers that aims to help others through local civic service. Founded by 90 students in 2021, the fellowship addresses any and all societal issues the members wish to address within their community. The fellows hold events in their local areas on issues such as mental health, environmental protection, and voting rights.
It is encouraged, though not mandatory, for multiple students of the same school to join together and work as a group to achieve their goals. Through long-term cooperation, they find that their communication skills, organization skills, and leadership skills improve over the course of their membership. In addition, volunteer hours are given for hosting and/or helping community events.
In the fall, the members of a school will work together on a community project with a subject they’re passionate about. For example, maybe the fellows notice that many of their peers seem to be unsure of the voting process, so they can hold a public event to teach others about how exactly they would vote, what types of ballots there are, when they could vote, where they could vote, etc.
In the winter, the fellows try to visit elementary schools, focusing more on our democratic society for the younger generation. Through games and simulations, the fellows help students learn about the basics of how our society is governed and how they could contribute to the community in the future.
In the spring, voter education drives are meant to increase voter turnout, assist people in registering to vote, and potentially sharing way of how to run for office. Increasing our engagement in local communities, especially through voting, has the potential to inspire change we would benefit from.
To join, click the link https://tinyurl.com/rhizomefellowship and fill out the form. You will soon be contacted to set up date for a virtual interview that will last around ~20 minutes. You will also be emailed a Google Doc to prepare in advance for the topics that will be discussed in the interview. It’s not very formal and not very difficult, so don’t be deterred from trying!
Rhizome holds Tuesday Zoom meetings throughout the school year from 7pm-8pm.
80% of unexcused absences will result in removal from the organization.
For more information, visit https://www.werhize.org/.
