Camden Bedinghaus prepares to bring a younger voice to Manatee County School Board

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (WWSB) - For Camden Bedinghaus, the future of Manatee County Schools isn’t just policy. It’s personal.“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you’re young,” Bedinghaus said. “And I believe that’s 100 percent true. I just proved it.”Bedinghaus grew up in Manatee County, one of six children, with younger siblings still in the district he will now help lead.“I started thinking about it because I saw the state of my generation,” Bedinghaus said. “We’re the most anxious, depressed, suicidal generation in American history and I decided I could either sit back and watch it happen or get involved and start to make some positive change here in my county.”Bedinghaus says he loved being a part of this school system, but he also saw what needs to change.“There is obviously some problems,” Bedinghaus said. “I think the biggest one for me was graduating without knowing a lot of real world skills, having skills to navigate life after graduation. That’s something I want to chan