Co-Founder, California Association of Youth Commission

Founder and Chair, Hillsborough Youth Commission

Rohan is a senior at Crystal Springs Uplands School in Hillsborough. He is passionate about uplifting youth voice and increasing civic engagement. After starting his town's youth commission, he seeks to support other towns to establish youth commissions. He is committed to raising awareness of inadvertent fentanyl poisoning in youth and hopes to write legislation to increase access to Narcan throughout California to address the fentanyl public health crisis. He loves playing football and cricket.

Co-Founder, California Association of Youth Commissions

Vice-Chair, Hillsborough Youth Commission

Anya is a sophomore at Castilleja School in Palo Alto. She is passionate about connecting teens in her community, providing mental health support, and enhancing environmental sustainability. She seeks to raise awareness regarding fentanyl poisoning and increase access to Narcan. She also hopes to increase voter registration for teens. In her free time, she enjoys playing soccer and spending time with her dog.

Burlingame Youth Advisory Committee

Penny is a Crystal Springs Uplands School senior. She has served on the Burlingame Youth Committee for three years. Penny is passionate about connecting her town and the larger communities. Volunteering at the Immigration Institute of the Bay Area, she helps refugees study for their citizenship test. In CAYC, she hopes to connect like-minded youths across the state and develop more mature, aware youth commissions. She has played with her town's club for nearly a decade.

San Mateo County Youth Commission

Rikhav is a junior at Crystal Springs Uplands School. On the San Mateo County Youth Commission (SMCYC), he has served on the educational equity and environmental justice subcommittees. He is passionate about early childhood education. He endeavors to collaborate with other youth commissions across California to create effective change at the local and state level. He is eager to expand the CAYC’s network of youth commissions.

Chairman of Los Altos Hills Youth Commission

Sofia is a current junior at the Harker School and enjoys serving on her town's youth commission because it allows her to give back to her local community. In joining CAYC, she seeks to encourage the same for all youth in California. In her free time, she enjoys debating and dancing. 

San Francisco Youth Commission, Vice Chair of Housing, Recreation, & Transit Committee

Harper Fortgang is a junior at The Nueva School and believes strongly in the power of youth advocacy and is passionate about environmental and youth civic engagement initiatives. Harper also leads Project Super Plants, a youth-driven climate advocacy organization and helped launch San Francisco’s public EV charging pilot study. Through the CAYC, she is excited to work together on State-level initiatives to drive initiatives that benefit youth.

San Francisco Youth Commission

Winnie is a junior at Lowell High School in San Francisco. She represents District 3 on the SF Youth Commission, which encompasses Chinatown, the Embarcadero, the Financial District, and more. Winnie is passionate about increasing opportunities in education, childcare, and affordable housing, which has motivated her to serve on her commission's Housing, Recreation, and Transit (HRT) committee.

Rishi Gupta is a junior at Basis Independent Fremont. He is passionate about social equality, diversity, understanding bias, and the implications of AI in education. He is deeply committed to education for all and tutors children from around the world. He is also an Eagle Scout who actively participates in community service and volunteering. By joining CAYC, he hopes to connect with teenagers across the Bay Area to understand and solve issues impacting them.

Los Altos Hills Youth Commission

Nyssa is currently a sophomore at The Harker School and is on the Los Altos Hills Youth Commission. She is passionate about environmental science and sustainability. Through the CAYC, she hopes to make youth commissions throughout California more impactful and prevalent. 

Palo Alto Youth Council

Charlie Zeitlin is a 9th grader at Crystal Springs Uplands School. In addition, he hosts the “Straight To It” podcast, where he has interviewed more than 65 leaders in business, entertainment, and sports. Charlie is also a TED organizer and hosted TEDx Baylands Park Youth in April 2024. In this free time, Charlie enjoys reading, tennis, and watching F1 races. Doing all this with his two dogs, Bodhi and Sadie.

Belmont Youth Advisory Committee

Ben is a science-oriented junior at Crystal Springs Uplands School. A three-year member of Belmont’s Youth Advisory Committee, he is passionate about getting things done in his community by planning initiatives and seeing them to their fullest potential. Ben hopes to help every member of a California youth commission feel the same way; enjoying every step of the youth commission process. An avid snowboarder, he loves the outdoors and works at a ski resort.