"The power of youth is the common wealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match with the power, idealism, enthusiasm and courage of the young people."– Kailash Satyarthi
Whitney Bunts
Whitney Bunts is a policy analyst with CLASP’s youth policy team, with a focus on juvenile justice, mental health, racial equity, and Opportunity Youth. Whitney has a competence in education policy, opportunity, at-risk, LGBTQ+ youth, racial equity, system dynamics, and evaluation. Preceding her career at CLASP, Whitney was a graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis. During her time in grad school, she interned for the 22nd District Circuits Attorney Office as a Victim Services Advocate. In this role, she educated victims on the criminal and juvenile justice process, while partnering with prosecutors to advocate for their rights. Additionally, she served as Policy Associate Intern at Covenant House Missouri. As an intern she had the opportunity to update, revise, and align their policies with the Housing First federal policy. Additionally, she facilitated workshops to build racial equity and inclusion within the organization using System Dynamic tools. As a student, Whitney was a Graduate Policy Scholar, served on the Student Coordinating Council and Graduate Professional Council, and was selected for the “Excellence Award for Activism.” Prior to attending graduate School, Whitney served as a City Year AmeriCorps member where she tutored and mentored hundreds of high school students in reading and writing. She holds a master of social work, with a concentration in children, youth & families, and a specialization in policy and system dynamics from Washington University in St. Louis. Additionally, she has a double bachelors in political science and psychology from Georgia State University.