Process Undertaken by Selection Panel for Lived Experience Seats on the Washington Thriving Leadership Council
The Washington Thriving Leadership Council has two seats for people with lived experience: one for a young person or young adult, and one for a parent or caregiver. A selection panel met to determine its recommended nominee for each seat from the applications submitted for each. The recommendations will go to the Governor's Office for final approval. Here's how the choices were made.
Summary of Panel Make-up
Two panels were formed, one for each seat. Each panel had five people:
Three people with lived experience that matched the seat: young people for the youth/young adult seat, and parent/caregivers for the parent/caregiver seat.
Two members of the core team that is moving Washington Thriving from planning into action, who were closely involved in the strategic planning work.
A neutral facilitator guided each panel but did not vote.
To find lived experience panelists, outreach started with members of the former Washington Thriving Advisory Group, followed by direct outreach to others who took part in Washington Thriving strategic planning processes, even if they did not hold a formal Advisory Group seat.
Panelists paid close attention to possible conflicts of interest. To keep the process open and fair, each panelist was asked to share any personal or work connections they had with the nominees.
How the Panels Decided
Everyone learned how the process would work before it started. After initial screening and individual review of each applicant, the panels convened to discuss and decide. (To learn more about earlier stages and assessment criteria, see this previous post outlining the process.)
Agreeing on what “consensus” means. Panelists decided that consensus meant everyone had to agree on the final choice. They confirmed this with an anonymous poll, where each candidate voted independently with a score high enough to indicate their support of the candidate.
Ranking individually first. Each panelist privately assessed and then ranked the nominating organizations. The choices that came up most often became a short list. This gave everyone a shared starting point for discussion.
Talking it through. Each panelist had a chance to share their reasoning through a structured round robin starting with panelists representing lived experience.
Holding a consensus vote. Once discussion pointed to a strong top candidate, panelists voted in an anonymous poll to confirm everyone agreed.
Nominations and Recommendations to the Governor’s Office
Nominations for each seat came through community organizations that also committed to supporting their nominee. That support helps nominees take part fully and fairly. Panelists noted that the requirement may also have limited how many people heard about the opportunity and applied. While both seats received limited numbers of applications, panelists for both processes agreed that all applicants were strong and met the criteria to be considered for nomination.
The panel looked at both the candidates and the organizations that nominated them, since each brought different strengths and experience.
After discussion, both panels reached full agreement on a primary nominee for each seat to recommend to the Governor’s Office.
Along with these appointments, the panel will recommend that the Governor’s Office:
Keep nominating organizations and nominees connected to the appointees as part of a network that helps guide each seat
Look for other ways for nominees and organizations to take part in Washington Thriving governance as the work grows
Improve and diversify outreach channels so more people learn about opportunities like this in the future
Learning In Real Time
Panelists shared feedback on the process itself along the way. Their ideas have been captured and will help make future rounds easier and stronger.
What's Next
The appointees will be announced once the Governor's Office confirms them. Lived experience seats will serve for 12 months once the Leadership Council begins to convene in the coming weeks. There is an option for renewal after 12 months which may include additional rounds of recruitment as needed.
Thank you to everyone who took part, including the nominating organizations, the nominees, and the panelists. Washington Thriving is committed to learning from this process and making it better.