Fourteen students from Madison County got to act as supervisors on January 17 as part of a Local Government Intern Program. The program is run by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Madison County.
This article appeared in the Eagle Newspapers' web site, which rotates articles out of availability quickly. It was written by Christine Ennis and published on January 17, 2006. I've copied it here because of the timeout issue on their articles.
High school juniors and seniors from Cazenovia, Morrisville and Oneida got the chance to try their hands at being county supervisors Jan. 17. The 14 students wrapped up the first semester of this school year's Local Government Intern Program by conducting their own board meeting and addressing issues they found important - from the comfort of the supervisors' chambers at the county office building.
The meeting is the culminating event of the students' semester-long study of local government. Since October, the students have immersed themselves in several facets of government, such as interacting with supervisors, visiting various county departments, observing court procedures and discussing current events.
In preparation for their board meeting, the students formed committees and wrote up resolutions to vote on when they convened. The resolutions written by the student supervisors concerned dealing with the outbreak of rabies in the community, recycling, the use of methane from the county landfill as a heat source, the formation of neighborhood watch programs, drunk driving prevention and other issues. Supervisors Don Behr of Oneida and Rocco DiVeronica of Lenox were on hand to provide guidance to the young supervisors.
"This isn't as easy as it looks," said program coordinator Terri Lanterman. "There's a lot of effort that goes into writing and presenting these resolutions. There are a lot of things to think about, like funding, whose job it is, and where responsibility falls."
DiVeronica complimented the students on their work, and noted that he was pleased they had considered the issue of energy, its cost, and using methane as an alternate heating source.
"I'm glad you young people have seen that it is a problem," he said. "It's very observant of you to have noticed, and I'm glad you addressed it."
"We want to make sure Madison County is protected for the people who want to live here and grow their family here," he said.
Issues such as Medicaid and the Oneida land claim are matters that must be dealt with, DiVeronica said, in order to keep the county strong.
"Be proud that you live in Madison County, guys," he said. "I am."
Who can get involved
Students who wish to get involved with the government intern program must attend a cooperating school, be a high school sophomore, junior or senior - though juniors and seniors are preferable - and be ready to commit time and effort to the program.
Students should be of above average maturity for their age, have good organizational skills, above average verbal skills, and be self-motivated.
Students are required to be punctual and reliable, handle themselves with decorum and dress appropriately, attend all seminar days and board meetings (unless legally excused), complete the required department reports and actively participate in the program.
A journal and independent project is due at the end of the session, and students are required to attend a committee, town board, school board or any other type of local meeting.
For more information, contact Cornell Cooperative Extension of Madison County at 684-3001, extension 110, or email Terri Lanterman at tll7@ cornell.edu.
Posted by jimj at February 6, 2006 08:52 AM | TrackBack