Published: April 12, 2008 05:48 pm            

A worthy event

THE ISSUE:Logansport’s Good Government Day.

OUR VIEW:Students learned that average citizens have a role in the decisions made by their local officials, and that they can have a role in setting the local agenda.

A group of Logansport High School students got some great experience last week during the annual Good Government Day exercise.

The annual event held Monday allowed the teenagers to spend some time in the shoes of local government officials.

After a morning assembly featuring Circuit Court Judge Leo Burns, the students went to the city council chambers to learn about the roles of each department head before spending some time with the various officials.

The students learned about the work done not only by the mayor and clerk-treasurer, but by the police and fire chiefs, the planning director and the code enforcement officer.

The day ended with a mock council meeting where students debated the merits of a public smoking ban.

Mayor Mike Fincher reminded the students of their priorities.

“You’re supposed to be voting for what’s good for the city, not what’s good for you,” he said.

The event sponsored each year by Logansport High School’s Key Club gave the students a glimpse of the daily duties of the city’s elected and appointed officials.

In an age when fewer than half of eligible voters bother to cast ballots in a municipal election, the lessons taught by Good Government Day are critical.

Students participating in the event learned that average citizens have a role in the decisions made by their local officials, and that they can have a role in setting the local agenda if only they’ll take the time to show up.

Those are crucial lessons in an era when many don’t even take the exercise the right to vote.

With any luck, these students will take the lessons they learned and put them to use in their roles as this community’s future leaders.

Local school administrators should be applauded for their support of the program, and city officials deserve a pat on the back for making it happen.

– Pharos-Tribune, Logansport, and Kokomo Tribune

        

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