What is YAC?
The Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) involves youth as decision makers and leaders in the community; promotes positive youth development; and involves youth in philanthropy and volunteerism. YAC participants act as advisors to the Fund for Youth and twice per year review grant applications and recommend grant awards to benefit young people and families in Emmet County.
As part of its grantmaking process, the YAC regularly surveys middle- and high-school students in Emmet County to identify youth issues. The Youth Needs Assessment helps identify current needs and inform grantmaking. Summarized below, the 2025 Youth Needs Assessment identified academic pressure as the top issue.
Thanks to a matching grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in 1994, the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation was able to establish the $1 million endowed Fund for Youth. Our YAC is made up of students in grades 8-12 from across Emmet County. They are part of a network of more than 1,800 young people serving on 86 youth grantmaking committees around the state. Since YACs began, more than $33 million has been granted to support youth programs across the state of Michigan. Since our own YAC was established in 1994, over $1.8 million has been granted back to our local community for programming that makes youth and families in Emmet County stronger.
2025-26 Youth Advisory Committee Members:
(bold indicates Officers)
Lucia Andrews, Petoskey High School
Lizzie Basset, Harbor Springs High School
Caleigh Coleman, Harbor Springs High School
Hattie Eshelbrenner, Harbor Springs High School
Philly Forster, Petoskey High School
Heidi Harrell, Harbor Springs High School
Maeve Janssens, Petoskey Middle School
Callie Keiser, Harbor Springs High School
Keira Lamp, Petoskey High School
Ari Maldonado, Petoskey High School
Greta Meisel, Petoskey High School
Sam Nemec, Petoskey High School
Sophia Nicholls, Pellston High School
Halle Oberman, Petoskey High School
Charles Olson, Petoskey High School
Dominic Olson, Petoskey High School
Julia Retherford, Petoskey High School
Nora Riley, Petoskey High School
Keslii Rota, Alanson Middle School
Avery Sears, Harbor Springs High School
Finlay Shalhoup, Petoskey High School
Sadie Tebeau, Petoskey High School
Lexi Wang, Petoskey High School
Liam Washington, Petoskey High School
Elise Whitfield, Harbor Springs High School
How to Join
The Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation invites Emmet County young people to join their Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) annually in February or March. YAC members are representatives of the county’s youth and are responsible for addressing youth needs by directing grant dollars to area nonprofit organizations. Members learn a lot about their community, philanthropy, and how to make decisions in a group.
The application period for the 2025-26 school year is now CLOSED. You can learn more about our application process here.
Youth in Emmet County who have the time and interest to attend monthly meetings from September to May, read grant applications twice a year, and make a multi-year commitment should consider applying for YAC membership. New members typically join the committee at the beginning of their eighth, ninth, or tenth-grade year and stay on until they graduate high school.
Questions? Call Jake Myers at 231-348-5820 or email [email protected].
YAC in Action
The Youth Advisory Committee meets once per month to discuss best practices in grantmaking, learn about philanthropy in our community, and discuss ways to make a positive impact. This year the YAC is focused on making a deeper connection with our grant partners and has set a goal to make more site visits for grants they've awarded recently.
Advisor:
Jake Myers
Community Philanthropy Officer