Join a Governance STAYtion!

What are Governance STAYtions?

-Governance STAYtions are pockets of community to connect and learn with, designed for collective support and learning, not hierarchy<3

-Governance STAYtions are a model of open governance that allow Steering Committee members and general STAY members to share their brilliance, cultivate relationships with one another, and collaboratively organize and make decisions about STAY’s work.

-Governance STAYtions steward the work of their respective group’s focus by exploring ideas and creating suggestions to propose to the Steering Committee for feedback and approval and collectively holding the labor of project planning and implementation.

Governance STAYtion focus areas include:

Arts and Culture

The Arts and Culture STAYtion gathers a network of young Appalachian artists and culture workers to celebrate our artistic, cultural, and creative power and make space to imagine and practice the flourishing, joyous Appalachia that we love and are in constant struggle to build.

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:

• Share stories, art, and things you create

• Connect with a network of rad young artists and culture workers

• Connect to a lineage of liberation arts and culture 

• Celebrate the magic of singing together, creating together, and connecting our roots together.

• Uplift and center Appalachian arts and cultural practices beyond “traditional” ones.

Black Appalachian Young and Rising (BAYR)

The Black Appalachian Young and Rising STAYtion stewards the Black Appalachian Young & Rising (BAYR) program and network. BAYR is FOR Black Appalachian Youth, BY Black Appalachian Youth. 

It’s important to note that BAYR is not just a program of the STAY Project, it’s also a commitment of STAY. As an organization, we practice centering and building Black youth leadership in every part of STAY’s work!

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:

• LAUGH, a lot

• Get to know rad black youth across the region 

• Explore what it means to be black in Appalachia

• Help plan annual BAYR gatherings (only if ya want!)

• Build BAYRs brand/image (think designing swag, online content, logos, etc.)

• Collab on a multitude of other projects yet to be determined!

Communications and Storytelling

The Communications and Storytelling STAYtion offers space to collectively contribute to and shape STAY’s story and narrative about our work and our communities, to connect youth across our many places, to stay connected and in touch with each other, and to engage with our membership on a deeper level.

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:  

• Shape STAY’s narrative about young people in Appalachia

• Help craft STAY’s visual and print communications

• Support STAY’s digital communications 

Care Team

The Care Team STAYtion gathers to tend to the emergent emotional, physical, professional, and spiritual needs of young people in STAY.

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:

• Shape STAY’s practices regarding safety, security, accessibility, and conflict. 

• Practice and learn together about the politics of care

Popular Education and Organizing 

The Organizing and Popular Education STAYtion gathers to build the road from how we find our communities today to how we envision our communities as places we want to stay and thrive. This road is made with bricks made of action, learning, connection, compassion. 

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:

• Scheme about how to sprinkle STAY magic throughout the region

• Help craft local organizing toolkits and effort

• Support building youth space in your community!

STAY Funded

The STAY Funded STAYtion works to keep STAY resourced and plans how STAY will distribute our resources to our members and young people doing work in their local communities. 

If you join this STAYtion, you can expect to:

• Scheme about how to get money and resources for STAY

• Plan cute events and fundraising campaigns

• Plot about how to get money and resources to young people across Appalachia