Young people have firsthand knowledge of the opportunities, challenges, and changing needs affecting their lives. Through the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation’s Youth Council, youth from across Washtenaw County have an opportunity to bring those perspectives directly into local philanthropy and help shape investments in their communities.

This year, Youth Council members are continuing that work through the 2026 Washtenaw County Youth Needs Assessment. Developed in collaboration with the University of Michigan’s Program Evaluation Group (PEG), the assessment is designed to hear directly from high school-age young people throughout the county to better understand the issues affecting them today.

Below, AAACF Youth Council members share how they developed the assessment, why youth leadership is essential to the process, and how the findings will inform their future grantmaking.

A History of Youth-Led Philanthropy

AAACF Youth Council members Thisali Bandaranayake, Alisha Sachdeva, and Sylvia DeBord wrote the following reflection, sharing their perspective on the history, impact, and future of youth-led philanthropy in Washtenaw County.

In 1991, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation announced a $35 million Community Foundation Youth Project Initiative for community foundations across Michigan. The challenge grant was created to involve young people in philanthropy while helping increase the permanent assets of the state’s community foundations. As part of the initiative, participating Youth Councils were required to continually assess local needs and use the results to inform grantmaking decisions.

After meeting that challenge more than three decades ago, the AAACF Youth Council has launched the 2026 Youth Needs Assessment to continue that commitment and gain a deeper understanding of the current experiences and needs of young people throughout Washtenaw County.

The Washtenaw County Youth Needs Assessment was created to gain insight into the needs and challenges of young people throughout our community. Designed by high school students from across Washtenaw County who serve on the AAACF Youth Council, the assessment allows young people to directly share their perspectives on issues affecting their daily lives. By collecting this information, the Youth Council can help ensure that decisions about youth programs and services are informed by the voices of the people they are intended to support.

Building the 2026 Assessment

The last Youth Needs Assessment was completed in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many needs were centered around the impacts of the global public health crisis. While those findings remain informative, six years later, we are ready to hear from today’s youth and gather fresh perspectives on their experiences and priorities.

To make that happen, Youth Council members worked closely with the University of Michigan’s Program Evaluation Group (PEG) to shape the questions and approach. During our April meeting, we learned about equitable survey design and best practices, then continued the work through additional meetings on May 2 and May 13, 2026, along with individual work throughout the project.

In meetings facilitated by Dr. Leigh Rauk, Assistant Research Scientist with a PhD in Community Wellbeing, members identified key issues affecting youth today and developed questions focused on topics including mental health, academic support, extracurricular involvement, community connectedness, and access to resources.

Creating an Accessible Survey

Throughout the process, members collaborated to ensure the survey was comprehensive, relevant, and reflective of the diverse experiences of young people in Washtenaw County.

To increase participation and make the survey accessible to more families, the finalized assessment was translated into Mandarin Chinese and Spanish, the two most commonly spoken languages in Washtenaw County after English. The Council then conducted a short pilot test with friends and family to evaluate the survey’s length - approximately 10 minutes - and clarity. Based on their feedback, we made final edits before officially launching the survey on July 9.

Turning Youth Voices Into Action

The Youth Needs Assessment directly shapes support for young people in communities throughout Washtenaw County. The AAACF Youth Council uses the findings to establish funding priorities and guide the distribution of more than $110,000 to youth programs and services throughout the county.

By identifying where support is most needed, the assessment helps inform investments in initiatives that can have meaningful impact while ensuring young people’s voices remain central to shaping future opportunities and resources.

As Youth Council members, we are especially focused on encouraging broad community participation and hope to receive responses that reflect young people from throughout Washtenaw County. We especially want to hear from more youth in Dexter, Milan, and Manchester to ensure their experiences and perspectives are represented in the assessment. Hearing from youth throughout the region will help us better understand how experiences and needs may differ across communities and ZIP codes.

The 2026 Washtenaw County Youth Needs Assessment is open through October 9. High school-age youth throughout Washtenaw County are encouraged to complete the survey and share their perspectives before it closes.

Contributed by Thisali Bandaranayake, Alisha Sachdeva, and Sylvia DeBord, AAACF Youth Council members.

Helping Youth Voices Shape What Comes Next

The Youth Needs Assessment is more than a survey - it is an opportunity for young people to influence how resources are directed toward the issues that matter to them. By listening to youth across Washtenaw County, AAACF’s Youth Council can continue making grantmaking decisions grounded in current experiences, community needs, and the perspectives of the young people those investments are intended to serve.

The 2026 assessment also reflects what has been central to Youth Council since its beginning: creating meaningful opportunities for young people to participate in philanthropy, contribute to decisions affecting their communities, and turn their perspectives into action.

As responses continue to be gathered through October 9, Youth Council members will use what they learn to help identify priorities and inform future investments in programs and services that support local youth. Youth throughout Washtenaw County - especially those in rural areas such as Dexter, Milan, and Manchester - are encouraged to make their voices heard before the assessment closes.