On Tuesday, April 28, the Newton Youth Commission and its Advisory Board hosted the 2026 Newton Civic Spotlight at City Hall.
Over a dozen Newton-based organizations gathered in the War Memorial Auditorium with booths advertising opportunities for youth engagement in their organizations. Marcia Cooper, President Emeritus and board member of Green Newton, said that the civic spotlight event is the perfect occasion for students to find ways to engage in the Newton community.
“It’s a fabulous opportunity for students to find out how they can become active in different organizations [by] volunteering and also through paid internships that organizations offer,” she said.
Hannah Sternburg, the outreach coordinator with the City of Newton’s Planning Department, said her goal for the event was to educate youth and get them involved in the community.
“I wanted to explain to students and the youth what planning is and what we do, and get students engaged, involved, subscribed to our newsletter, and showing up to [City] Council meetings [to be] engaged in the community,” she said.
In addition to visiting booths to learn about opportunities for volunteering or employment and speaking with City officials, students also had the opportunity to go on tours of the City Council chambers. Newton North 10th grader Yasmeen Elley said that the tour made her feel more connected to the City government.
“I went on the tour of the [City Council] chambers … it made [Newton’s government] feel more alive and human because, when you think of your local governments, you [know] stuff happens, but seeing it live and hearing about their daily lives here made it feel more real,” she said.
The tour, along with the rest of the event, was organized by a subcommittee of the Newton Youth Commission that met monthly over the span of several months to plan the logistics of the event. Youth Commissioner Gassia Minassian said that one challenge the committee came across was raising awareness for the event, but she is optimistic that they will be able to do a better job next year.
“I think an unexpected challenge was definitely people not knowing about the event, because we lacked in marketing a little bit this year, which was also a problem last year. [However,] I think that can be fixed for next year,” she said.
Despite some bumps along the way, Youth Commissioner Ana Circic said that she was very happy with how the event went.
“A lot of organizations are here and a lot of people are coming. … It’s crazy to see all these people attending and all these people getting to know their community,” she said. “I’m proud of how the event turned out.”
Nathan Persampieri, a member of the League of Women Voters of Newton, also found the civic spotlight to be very enjoyable because he knew he was making a positive impact on the community.
“My favorite part of the event was talking to students, registering them to vote, and having them find out ways to be more involved with the League,” he said.
The spotlight event culminated with speeches by City officials and students. Mayor Marc Laredo encouraged youth to get involved in the community and register to vote, and Ward 4 Councilor Cyrus Dahmubed explained how to run for a position in Newton’s government. Student speakers included junior Bomi Woo and senior Gassia Minassian.
Overall, Youth Commissioner Leyla Gustin said that she thinks the commission achieved its goal for the civic spotlight.
“[The goal of the spotlight was] to get youth in Newton involved with all of the amazing opportunities that organizations in this town provide, and also to help [youth] have a better understanding of the local government, how they can play a role, and how they can have a voice in all that happens in our city,” she said.
James Garrett is a Fig City News student reporter and a junior at Newton South High School, where he is a centerfold writer for the Lion’s Roar student newspaper.
