Teens have lots more say about politics than they probably realize
With curfew, chores and rules that often seem ridiculous, being a teenager doesn't seem to come with a lot of power these days.
Au contraire, politicos say.
The roughly 700,000 teens and 20-somethings attending Pennsylvania's 150 colleges will likely be the deciding factor in the outcome of Tuesday's Democratic presidential primary.
The campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton know this, and each has sent out hundreds of volunteers to canvass college campuses in hope of encouraging more young people to register to vote.
For months, both candidates have recruited "friends" on the MySpace and Facebook social networking sites. In January, MySpace held the nation's first primary, in advance of both the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary.
Such power placed on youth is exciting and scary at the same time.
A July 2007 study by the Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University found that most individuals ages 30 and younger are not following the news -- whether that's reading a newspaper, watching the nightly news, or even checking out breaking news on the Internet.
That can and should change, U-46 students heard this week from U.S. Dept. of Education representative Kristine Cohn, who visited a number of Bartlett High School classes on Monday.
Cohn's visit was precipitated by Elgin Area School District U-46's receipt of a $1 million federal grant to support teaching U.S. history.
"All too often we're lulled into complacency about the election process," Cohn told a class taught by U.S. History teacher Kevin Dircks.
"As a young person in this state, as a young person in this country, you must take a look at the candidates running for office."
Take a look at the process and be involved, she urged.
Formaldehyde test results: Results from Elgin Area School District U-46's trailer formaldehyde tests are due in late next week, interim superintendent Mary Jayne Broncato announced at Monday's school board meeting.
Initial tests done on Nature Ridge's two trailers revealed low amounts of the chemical present.
While district officials originally estimated testing all 64 trailers would cost $40,000 to $60,000, costs will be "lower than expected," Broncato said.
ECC summer camps: Elgin Community College will conduct a series of kids' camps this summer.
Beginning June 16, children ages 2 to 17 can participate in a variety of camps including Art and Nature camp; Lights, Camera, Action! Camp; Going Green camp; and Celebration camp.
Parents have the option of choosing a full-time or part-time schedule for the kids camps, whichever works best with their schedules.
The cost to attend each weekly camp is $200 per camper. For more information or to register, call ECC's Continuing Education Division at 847-622-3036 or visit www.elgin.edu/noncredit.