Meta Settlement: Our Letter to the Attorney General
On Wednesday, September 2, School’s Out Washington sent the following sign-on letter to Attorney General Nick Brown urging his office to utilize Meta settlement dollars to invest in positive youth development programs across Washington state.
Dear Attorney General Brown,
As a community of youth serving organizations and advocates, we thank your office for its continuing litigation of social media companies whose practices have harmed Washington youth. The recent Meta settlement creates an important opportunity to invest in real life programs that foster social connection, build relationships, reduce screen time, and promote youth mental health. These programs fill a crucial role in the continuum of youth well-being, both in terms of prevention and treatment. We are encouraged that the agreement specifically recognizes youth programs, after-school and summer programs as potential uses of settlement funds and urge you to invest a portion of these resources in positive youth development programs across Washington state.
To redress the harm that chronic social media use has on our young people, we must confront the reality that our youth don’t just need less screen time; they need more healthy social alternatives and places to go. In an analysis of over 87,600 anonymous crisis text line conversations, Common Good Labs found that opportunities for social connection, engagement in art, exercise, and access to outdoor spaces and nature were among the top resources young people use to cope with mental health crises. These funds should prioritize equitable access to programs and third place spaces serving youth, in alignment with Washington Thriving, a comprehensive strategic plan for youth behavioral health.
To allocate funding to youth programs throughout the state in a strategic, transparent, and equitable way, we also call on the Attorney General’s Office to support the passing of the Washington Youth Development Fund; legislation that was introduced in the 2026 legislative session and will be introduced again this upcoming session.
Thank you for fighting to protect youth from the harmful impacts of social media. We know there is more litigation to come, and that companies like TikTok, Snap, and YouTube must also be held accountable. Please invest in pathways and programs to help our youth recover and thrive.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Whitford (parent)
School’s Out Washington
Radu Smintina (parent)
Youth Development Strategy Table
Shawn Roberts
Arts Corps
Jolynn Kenney
MENTOR Washington
Jessie Bustamante
Boys & Girls Clubs of Washington
Erica Limon-Trefielo
Communities in Schools Washington
Alonda Williams (parent)
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound
Greg Barker
WA School Principals Education Foundation
Janice Deguchi
Neighborhood House
Tristan Eddy
Justice for Girls
Chetan Soni
Washington Youth Alliance
Andrea Gomes Morrison (parent)
Girls on the Run Puget Sound
Caprice Teske (parent)
Blue Skies for Children
Susan Dibble
Page Ahead children’s Literacy Program
Lidia Sanchez
Geeking Out Kids of Color
Jessica Stuckel (parent)
Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic
Mona T. Han
Communities of Rooted Brilliance
Hien Kieu (parent)
Partner in Employment
Claire Bruncke
DJH Kids and Community Center
Ben Small
Launch NW
Holly Bamford (parent)
Bamford Foundation
Krista Galloway (parent)
AYD Geek
Wilson Faust
River City Youth
Ahmad Hilal Abid (youth)
The House of Wisdom
Sarah Popelka (parent)
Community for Youth
Katherine Barr (parent)
STEMS Paths Innovation Network
Charlett Shoecraft
EYFO
Prince Hayes (parent)
First Five Years & Beyond
Assaye Abunie (parent)
MMRTI
Charles Newell (parent)
Route 21
Heather Elmore (parent)
Northwest Community Action Center
Scott Campbell (parent)
Tacoma Youth Theatre
Malea Sary
School’s Out Washington
Mohamed Ugas (parent)
East African Community Services
Munira Mohamed (parent)
East African Community Services
Jeremy Gregersen
Camp Fire Snohomish County
Grace Friedrich
B5 Learning Center
Ruby Lewis (parent)
Please Don’t Die Black Men
Carlos Solis-Valdivia (youth)
Alumni Impact Network/CISBF
Michael Itti
Chinese Information & Service Center
Ebony Welborn
Sea Potential
Roy Chang (parent)
School Connect WA
Chris Liu
Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust
Jessica Werner
Moon Snail Consulting
Maya Bui
Girls on the Run Puget Sound
Francisco Bueno
Boys & Girls Clubs of SW Washington
Lauren Treacy (parent)
College Possible Washington
Kathryn Kurtz (parent)
Pacific Education Institute
Pa Ousman Joof (parent)
Washington West African Center
Jacqueline Estrada (parent)
Mi Chiantla
Ranna Daud (parent)
After-School All-Stars Puget Sound
Meg McNulty (parent)
Reach Out and Read
Paulette Nicole Brown (parent)
Healing Renaissance
Kim Lee (parent)
Next Best Place Coaching
Robert Sasaki (parent)
Girls on the Run Puget Sound
Amelia Kwan (parent)
Girls on the Run Puget Sound
Cecelia Deleon (parent)
Arts Corps
Angel Berry (parent)
Neighborhood House
Jon Evans
Boys & Girls of Lewis Clark Valley
Molly Klein (parent)
Girls on the Run
Angelique Rusk (parent)
Boys & Girls Clubs of Spokane
Donna Lorraine Tracy
The Art of Tri-Cities
Natalie Ries
Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound
Misty Fewell (parent)
Girls on the Run Southeast WA
Brian Ace (parent)
Boys & Girls Club of Benton & Franklin
Kate Burke
River City Youth
Jeremy Hiatt
Boys & Girls Clubs of Skagit County
Jessica Baloun
Girls on the Run Puget Sound
Paul Charbonneau
Boys & Girls Clubs of Bellevue
Jane Duea (parent)
Girls on the Run WestSound
Andi Blodgett
Boys & Girls Club of the Yakama Nation
Sarah Althauser (parent)
Boys & Girls Clubs of Lewis County
Dulce Negrete (parent)
Girls on the Run Columbia Valley
Silvio Dos Reis
Arts Corps & Union Cultural Center
Gabriel Linares (youth)
Corinna Quesada
Sinuon Hem (parent)
Annie Vela
Denise Hollenbeck (parent)
David Bruncke
Samone Coleman
Michelle Tobin
Crystal Gordon (parent)
Erica Quam
Ashley Mocorro Powell
Won Ho Shin (parent)
Maureen Gardner
Robin Nussbaum (parent)
Omana Imani (parent)
Latima Charbonneau (parent)
Jo Hamer
Nicole Yohalem (parent)
Lisle Kehr (parent)
Sala Sataraka (parent)
Matthew Willard (parent)
Jessica Nagtalon (parent)
Carrie Holden (parent)
Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound
Tianna Eddy
Arts Corps
Lori Bae
The Boys & Girls Club of King County
Marci Volmer (parent)
Boys & Girls Clubs of Snohomish County
Erica Merritt
Arts Corps
Patricia Hensley (parent)
Dylan Jude Harrell Community Center
Kindra Galan
Mi Chiantla
Alexa Wong (youth)
Hae Ku Moo (youth)
Mohammed Keshr (parent)
Hannah Green
Suzette Espinoza-Cruz (parent)
April Miller (parent)
David Dumphy
Dr. Debbie Tully
Carlos Mejia Rodriguez (parent)
Leah Wainman (parent)
Anabell Speer (youth)
Kintasha Martinez Jackson (parent)
Tama Weinberg (parent)
Gunnar Floyd (youth)
Jessica Winston
Mitchell Keo
Elisia Sanchez
Gemma Stephani (parent)
Angel Lai (parent)
Karina Dautenhahn
Megan Wolfe (parent)
Christine Marks (parent)
Maricres Castro
Liz Director (parent)
Casey Gackle (parent)
Drew Jones (parent)
Mindy Jones (parent)
Gary Jones (parent)
Jennifer Parada
Guadalupe Anchondo (parent)
Barbara Giachetti (parent)
Patricia Tang
Sophia Som
Yanira Cisneros (parent)
Olivia Thai
Bashir Basharee (parent)
Jie Ying Tan (youth)
Ann Monk (youth)
Darren Lay (parent)
Dylan Quitevis (youth)
Lauren Day (parent)
Maria Paguada
Tiffany Lemmon (parent)
Rebecca Dawson (parent)
Judy Yasutake (parent)
Sara Cuttrell
Ra Cuttrell
Jessica Armistead (parent)
Cat Martin (parent)
Chloe Robles
Emily Howard (parent)
Katie Taylor (parent)
Dr. Esperanza Lemos
Elizabeth McLaughlin
Rey Ward