There are so many reasons why I enjoy working on NewsDepth. I like learning about all of the great work our A+ Award winners are doing, I like telling all of you about what is going on in Ohio, our nation, and the world, and I like learning new things. Most of all though, I like giving all of you the information you need to make decisions about being a good citizen. Well, these tenth graders at the Garrett Morgan School of Leadership & Innovation in Cleveland are doing just that in their Public Policy class taught by Ms. Paris.
In this class, the students are challenged to explore public policy on a wide range of issues spanning community safety and policing to traffic patterns. The students have met with an impressive number of community leaders including members of the Cleveland City Council, Cuyahoga County Council, members of the Cleveland Police Ethics Commission, and members of Bike Ohio, a local advocacy group who focuses on creating safe areas for people to commute using bicycles on city streets.
Danielle told us that so far this year they’ve studied a number of topics that have an impact on their lives as young adults, and citizens who are going to be old enough to vote soon. She said that some of the most interesting, and important topics, that they’ve talked about are issues of surrounding housing.
Shanelyse told us that she’s really interested in how local governments make policy decisions. She thinks that this is an important thing to know because local policy has such an impact on the day-to-day life of community members.
The students told us that it’s really important for you to know how policy is created because you have a voice and can change the outcome. We were really impressed with this group of Falcons because they are very determined leaders who understand the impact they can have on the world around them. We think La’Sean said it best when she told us that we have a responsibility to be passionate about where we live and taking the steps to make an impact for ourselves and others.
This week’s A+ Award goes to Ms. Paris’s Public Policy class at Garrett Morgan School of Leadership & Innovation for being engaged citizens and taking the steps to change policy to make their city a better place.
