Young people across South Carolina are showing us what civic leadership looks like — bold, creative, joyful, and rooted in community.
Since 2022, Be The Ones has created spaces where young people find their voice, build agency, and step deeper into their civic power.
And in 2025, that leadership came alive — louder, braver, and brighter than ever before.
Here are some of the voices and sparks that shaped the year.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
LUKE’S STORY: a freshman at College of Charleston, Luke shares how Be The Ones became a defining part of his first semester — giving him community, confidence, and real opportunities to lead, and why he’s “just getting started.”
WHAT DOES CIVIC ENGAGEMENT MEAN?: high school & middle school students from across SC share what civic engagement means to them — part of the Youth Leadership Roundup in partnership with 4-H Pinckney Leadership Program.
COWARDLY COURAGE: at our SC Young Leaders Summit, young leaders named what they’re navigating, fighting for, and imagining. Rhiannon speaks to “cowardly courage” — the kind of bravery this moment asks of young people.
RELATIONSHIP WITH THE STATE HOUSE: from our Reimagination Lab, Samantha, a college student, shares how inaccessible the State House feels for young people — and how the legislative process isn’t designed with them in mind. Her reflection gets to the heart of why reimagining civic spaces and civic power is essential.
MEANING OF GOING BEYOND THE BALLOT: at our Beyond the Ballot National Voter Registration Day celebration on campus, a student shares what “power beyond the ballot” means — and why young people need spaces to explore what their civic power and connections can look and feel like, at the ballot box and beyond.
ADVOCACY IN ACTION: through our advocacy workshop series in partnership with the Hispanic Alliance Student DREAMers Program, high school students created advocacy plans for better mental health support — naming what they need and building the confidence to advocate for it.
RAISING VOICES ON CIVIC ENGAGEMENT: through our tiny-mic activations, college students name what civic engagement means to them — sparking conversations, building connections, and practicing the power they bring to their campuses.
2025 HIGHLIGHTS
SC YOUNG LEADERS SUMMIT: The 2nd annual Summit brought together students from across the state for a day of courage, creativity, and community-rooted leadership. For many, it was their first experience with Be The Ones — and they left energized, hopeful, and ready to step deeper into their civic power.
Co-designed with our Young Visionaries Committee, the Summit centered youth voice and authentic connection.
It’s one of the clearest examples of what happens when young people are given space to lead.
LAUNCHED FIRST COLLEGE CHAPTER: This year marked a first: the launch of our inaugural Be The Ones College Chapter at the College of Charleston. Designed and led by 12 founding members and now 65+ strong, the chapter has already brought civic joy to campus through events, connections and conversations, peer-to-peer outreach, and voter engagement.
These students are building more than a student club — they’re creating a culture of belonging, civic leadership, and joy. It’s a powerful glimpse of what youth-led civic infrastructure can look like in South Carolina. Stay tuned for more college chapters launching in 2026…
REIMAGINING ADVOCACY: Blocked by an inaccessible process at the State House to share their testimony against an anti-DEI bill students took power into their own hands. Using a tiny mic on campus, they recorded their testimonies and shared them across digital platforms.
Their videos reached more than 500,000 views, drew new members into the work, and opened conversations among their peers about belonging, justice, and power.
They’re redefining what advocacy can look like when young people lead on their own terms.
YOUTH LED ADVOCACY + HISPANIC ALLIANCE PARTNERSHIP: We believe young people learn civic power by stepping into it and through our partnership with the Hispanic Alliance Student DREAMers Program, we created the space to do exactly that. We led high school students through an advocacy, policy, and storytelling workshop where they designed and presented real advocacy plans for stronger mental health support in schools.
In a moment when young people carry heavy mental health burdens with far too little support, creating space for them to lead is essential.
They left with new skills, new confidence, and a clearer sense that their voices matter — knowing they have the power to name what they’re feeling, imagine something better, and advocate for it.
BEYOND THE BALLOT NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DAY CELEBRATION: Our Beyond the Ballot celebration on National Voter Registration Day turned the College of Charleston campus into a space for connection, curiosity, and community. Students gathered for conversations about civic life, joined interactive artistic and creative activities (including Dunk Tank for Democracy), and explored what “power beyond the ballot” can look and feel like in real time.
They connected with each other and also met local elected officials in ways that felt human, accessible, and real — building relationships that make civic spaces and political engagement feel less intimidating and more like community care.
It was a joyful reminder that civic engagement grows when young people have places to show up, connect, and belong.
COASTAL CAROLINA UNIVERSITY CIVIC FELLOWS DELIBERATION PROGRAM: Through our partnership with the Civic Pluralism Fellows at Coastal Carolina University, we spent time digging into civic empathy, agency, and knowledge — and what it really means to practice civic leadership together. Using our “Pull of Perspectives” activity, Fellows explored a real fairness dilemma, mapped the “tugs” on all sides, wrestled with trade-offs, and experienced how dialogue and deliberation (not just debate) can shift perspectives and build consensus.
Students shared that the process got them talking to each other in new ways and pushed them to find common ground even when they didn’t fully agree.
PARTNERSHIP EXPANSION AND GROWTH: This year, we were intentional about expanding our partnerships across South Carolina — building connections with organizations that share our belief in joyful, accessible civic engagement. From the 4-H Pinckney Leadership Program to the Hispanic Alliance, from colleges to high schools, and everywhere in between - these partnerships helped us reach more young people, spark meaningful conversations, and create spaces where civic engagement feels human, fun, and irresistible.
Through workshops, creative activities like “lollipop voting,” and youth-designed and led activations, young people had more places to step into their civic power.
Partnerships like these are core to our work — expanding where, how, and with whom young people can lead.
RAISING THEIR VOICES + CHANGING THE NARRATIVE: We expanded the ways young people can lead by creating more opportunities and platforms for their voices to be heard — from blog posts and storytelling activations, our growing tiny-mic series, and more. These opportunities gave them space to share their experiences, spark conversations, and build community with each other.
We watched students step into leadership not just through formal programs, but through connection, creativity, and their own lived stories.
Their voices are shaping the narrative of civic engagement in South Carolina.