Three men in suits at a podium during a ceremony or event, with a backdrop displaying logos for AmeriCorps and Kentucky, and a sign reading 'serve KENTUCKY' with agency logos.
A man with black hair, wearing a light blue shirt and a dark blue tie, stands behind a wooden podium speaking into a microphone. There is a water bottle on the podium. In the background, a person is sitting at a computer, and a large framed portrait of a person wearing a dark suit is hanging on the wall.
Three people standing side by side indoors, smiling at the camera. The woman in the middle has blonde hair and is wearing a green jacket. The young man on the left has dark hair and is dressed in a blue shirt and dark blazer. The young man on the right has brown hair and wears a gray suit with a lanyard and a name tag. There are colorful paintings on the wall behind them.
Two young men in formal attire and an older man in a suit standing together in a room with a sign behind them indicating a legislative office, with flags and framed pictures in the background.

Founded in 2025, the Bluegrass Youth Liberty Project is a Kentucky organization dedicated to increasing youth voter turnout and expanding young people’s role in democracy through state-level legislation. Our reforms include allowing districts the option to lower the school board voting age to 16 and establishing a half-credit civics course requirement in KY public high schools. We're working to make democracy accessible to all Kentuckians!

About

The BYLP

Voting at 16 for BOE

Multiple hands inserting ballots into a red voting box labeled 'VOTE' against a blue striped background.

Civics Course

Too often, students graduate without a basic understanding of how our government works. That needs to change.

We’re lobbying for legislation that would require a half-credit civic literacy course, beginning in the 2027–2028 year. The course would also satisfy a one-half Social Studies credit.

We believe every Kentucky student should graduate not only prepared for a career, but prepared to be an engaged citizen.

Across Kentucky, the vast majority of those who elect school board members are explicitly not in school themselves. That needs to change.

At BYLP, we believe students are the biggest stakeholders in education — and, thereby, in who’s elected to their school board.

That’s why we’re working to give school boards the option to lower the Board of Education voting age to 16. We introduced House Bill 855, which does just that.

Our Vision