The Wyoming Arts Council is launching the Wyoming Youth Arts Council, a new statewide leadership program designed to empower high school students through arts-driven community engagement.
“The arts are a great way for us to see history, and also, it's a good reflection of what we're doing now and what's happening now,” said Amara Fehring, community development and arts learning specialist at Wyoming Arts Council. “And it's a great way for voices to be heard in that way. I think it's a really big part of democracy because, sometimes, I think seeing things visually or feeling them can help us kind of understand what's happening.”
The Youth Arts Council aims to build students’ leadership skills through creative practice. Fehring, who leads the initiative, has seen firsthand how the two areas can work together.
“ Growing up in Wyoming, I had a lot of opportunity for leadership development, specifically with the Wyoming Association of Student Councils,” she said. “I learned a lot of really great skills. I got to practice a lot of really great skills, but I didn't quite have all of those skills come to fruition until I applied them to the arts. When I was working in the arts, those leadership skills really flourished.”
Open to Wyoming students ages 15 to 19, the program will also provide an opportunity for youth to help shape the future of arts and culture in the state.
“We, ourselves, would love to hear a young artist's perspective in a lot of the questions that we have about what our programming looks like, so getting some of that feedback as well,” said Fehring.
The program includes a partnership with the Wyoming Arts Alliance, an arts advocacy organization, that will work directly with students to explore what advocacy looks like, how to build advocacy skills and communicate with communities about the importance of the arts and why supporting the arts matters.
Members will also engage with peers and mentors statewide and receive a stipend for their contributions. The eight month program will culminate with a youth-led creative project that connects their passions and skills.
Applications and nominations are open through August 22, 2025. The first cohort will launch in October 2025.
