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Bailey encourages North
Whidbey students to become
involved in government
What steps are involved
toward building a drag racing strip in a community? How do we go about
replacing the old high school with a new one?
These were among questions posed to
Rep. Barbara Bailey
when she visited
Don Jenkins’ eighth-grade social studies class Tuesday at North Whidbey
Middle School in Oak Harbor.
The class is studying United States history and Jenkins asked Bailey to
speak about the process of the Washington State Legislature.
"The class was divided into two sections. Each section was working on a
project that the students identified as an issue in our local community.
They wanted to know how to pursue those issues from a legislative
standpoint," said Bailey, R-Oak Harbor. "I was there to listen to their
ideas."
Bailey said students from one section of the class expressed concern
about the dangers of street racing and thought maybe a better
alternative would be to build a drag racing strip in the local area.
"I walked through some of
the steps to help them understand how each of them, as young people,
could make a difference in our representative democracy. We discussed
how to gain community support and interact with elected officials. And I
shared with them information about another community near Spokane that
was also seeking to build a drag racing track," said Bailey.
The other section of students wanted to know how they could get a new
high school.
"We talked about bonds and
levies. These kids are very bright. They knew the differences between
simple majorities and the requirements of a supermajority. They also
asked what legislative action could be taken to help them easily pass a
bond to pay for a new high school," added Bailey. "I encouraged them to
become involved in the next bond issue by writing letters to legislators
and to the local newspapers, and becoming active with local groups that
support that campaign.
"I was very encouraged about their level of knowledge with our
government process and I appreciated the opportunity to help them
understand more about our Legislature. Going into the schools like this
and talking one-on-one with the students is very important because it
makes our legislative process very real to them," Bailey emphasized. "We
spoke about legislative districts, how many representatives they have,
and the fact that even though they are not old enough to vote, they can
still make a difference in government."
Bailey noted that young people from other classrooms across the state
have proposed legislation – including even earlier this year as the
Legislature gave serious consideration to a measure (House Bill 2884)
that would have designated the orca as the state mammal.
"We have a government of the people. Yet, all too often, we know of
people who become complacent about our government and the legislative
process because they do not understand how it works. Our government
works best when citizens of all ages and from all backgrounds get
involved," said Bailey. "That’s why it is important to help young people
understand how their Legislature operates so they know they can become
involved and make a difference."
Bailey also spoke about the legislative page program, where students
between the ages of 14 to 17 are selected to come to the Legislature for
a week to participate in ceremonial tasks and operational chores, in
addition to attending page school which teaches about the legislative
process.
"I’m very impressed by our young students and their eagerness to learn
more about our government. We can be confident of a bright future as
these young people grow up and become the leaders of tomorrow,"
concluded Bailey.
Bailey encourages other groups interested in learning about the
legislative process to contact her office in Olympia at 360-786-7914.
# # #
For more information, contact:
John
Handy, Assistant Director: (360) 786-5758
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