Meet the 2023-2024 KQED Youth Advisory Board

Joining the KQED Youth Advisory Board supports me in exploring my passions for journalism and writing. I’m interested in hands-on opportunities to engage with media production and be mentored by professionals experienced in the field. Becoming a part of this board provides a platform for me to contribute to discussions, learn from others, and hopefully make a meaningful impact in my community.

It’s been amazing to collaborate with my mentors and like-minded peers. I really appreciate YAB for giving me the opportunity to partake in such a great community and develop new leadership skills.

YAB so far has been very exciting, I feel that there is always some action to look forward to when affiliating with KQED. Youth Takeover means to empower youth and a time dedicated to involve young individuals with significant roles or experiences.

I am most interested in improving my communication skills through the YAB. Collaborating with people around my age is a great way to boost my confidence when speaking in social situations. I hope to gain tools for expressing myself.

Jeanette G.P., Alameda

I am interested in the KQED Youth Advisory Board to deepen my understanding of multimedia creation and its value in today’s society. Being able to work with KQED staff and connect with other students who share my enthusiasm for preserving Bay Area culture via media has been fun and a learning experience. It’s been cool to create media while simultaneously gaining knowledge and skills for the future.

Jessie L., San Mateo

My time on YAB has been super positive! I love this group that I’m with and getting the opportunity to work with such awesome, smart, and driven people is an honor. Youth Takeover has always been a big milestone for the past three years because you finally get to share all the hard work you’ve done. It’s such a positive space to learn and grow with others. KQED’s Youth Advisory Board has given me opportunities to raise awareness of issues I am passionate about. Working with professionals and this incredible team has been a dream come true.

My experience with YAB has been life changing! I’ve been able to meet so many people with interesting ideas, the best humor, and so much talent.

Kate Q., San Francisco

I have had a truly incredible experience with YAB. Being surrounded by other youth leaders has fueled me with the creativity and inspiration to initiate changemaking pieces of media that can educate those in the Bay Area. Empowered by the influence of radio and journalism, I look forward to continuing spreading awareness and support through KQED’s YAB!

My YAB experience has been inspiring, empowering, and a journey of self-discovery as a student journalist. Through YAB, I have really grown as a storyteller and found my passion for journalism.

I really appreciate this opportunity and I think that it’s really amazing that something like this is being presented to youth.

What interests me most about YAB is the opportunity to create, inspire, and learn under the materials and resources of KQED. The opportunity to work with people my age, who have the same interests and motivations as me, is a life-changing experience. What I’ve especially been interested in is using my creative perspectives on life and emotion to create inspiring media. Being in an environment where I’m given the opportunity to learn from KQED opens countless doors in how I can create that media and inspire others.

Joining YAB has been one of the best experiences of my life. I have been able to meet amazing like-minded peers and afforded opportunities I would have never otherwise received. Youth Takeover has been an experience for me to have my voice amplified on an esteemed platform and I have had the ability to bring awareness to topics that are important to me that often get overlooked by mainstream media.

My experience on YAB was a challenge to come up with ideas. But the best part is getting to know my mentors and my group. Youth Takeover means a family sharing your ideas and it’s like a safe space.

The KQED that would play in my mom’s car everyday gave me a sense of wonder in my community. I had never met most of the people spoken about, yet there has always been something personal and relatable in the content that local radio produces. If there is one word I could use to describe the impact that KQED has had on my life it would be inspiring. KQED has been instrumental in me finding my own power and the value of my own experiences. It’s motivated me to write podcasts, participate in politics, teach in my community, and much more. I want to give to my community what radio gave to me.

My YAB experience has been eye-opening, as I have met peers with interests in journalism from all over the Bay. They’ve taught me that I am not alone in any of my struggles, but also shown me new ways to approach such challenges.

YAB means community. We have built a community that lasts long after the Youth Takeover production season. Youth Takeover means a platform and voice to engage with the Bay Area community and gain invaluable experience working and seeing your work in the journalistic field.

I’ve enjoyed getting to talk to a group of seriously smart and empowered youth who I absolutely do not deserve to be in a room with. It’s two dozen brilliant futures.

My YAB experience so far has been extremely exciting and fun! I’ve had the chance to meet and work with other teens who have similar passions as me, helping me build up my experience creating media content.

Being on the KQED Youth Advisory Board has taught me so much about media making and journalism. When I was helping to create an Above The Noise episode on social media and conformity, I was able to see what media creation in news looked like at a professional level. Working on KQED media is an opportunity for me to explore a career in journalism or media production. I was in a filmmaking intensive that taught me a lot about directing, scriptwriting, and editing, and I love using those skills in KQED’s YAB.