Voice your opinion on public policy! Submit articles, letters, or editorials to the Webmaster. Youth Policy Forum Presentation Correspondance Resources: FirstGov Virginia Water Programs MLW Governor's School for Government and International Studies |
| Youth Policy Forum Presentation |
| Good morning. On behalf of the Public Policy Seminar we welcome you to today's assembly. We were asked today to give you an idea what the Public Policy Seminar is. So what is public policy? In simple terms it is everything dealing with the creation, implementation, and enforcement of policies made by an institution. It can be laws that affect you and the legislators who create them. It can be police officers who ticket you for driving down Main Street the wrong way, or judges who give you community service for littering. Sometimes it's not even as serious as that. In my opinion, Mr. Tharp rightly giving you work detail for insensitive public displays of affection is public policy at its finest. Now, a lot of kids don't think they can change policies, so why care? Getting involved in issues can actually be simple. On a larger scale volunteer in community projects, intern with local leaders, or page at the General Assembly. If you want to see how you could get involved in enforcing public policy, try mustering up some notes to leave in the boys' restroom reminding kids that graffiti in bathroom stalls is bad. After all, sometimes a simple announcement of public policy is effective enforcement. In all seriousness, we are the future and it's time we start learning how we can change and shape it. Policymaking impacts everyone, no matter how young you are. We encourage you to do something about it by participating in the Youth Policy Forum and pursuing classes like the Public Policy Seminar. In 1991 the Governor's school for Government and International Studies was founded. The mission of the school is based onthe belief that effective citizenship requires traditional knowledge and understanding as well as skills in communication, problem solving, leadership, and interpersonal relations. Public Policy is an affirmation of these principals. Now, eleven years after the founding of this school, we are participating in the Public Policy Seminar here at the Governor's School. Since we are the first class it is our goal to become trailblazers, developing the seminar into one that students want to take. We hope to learn about public policy as well as becoming involved in the policymaking process. Thus, it is our hope that not only we benefit from our efforts, but the school and the community as well. In order to succeed in our seminar, we decided taht we must have clear-cut goals in mind. We put our heads together and developed a personal goal for our class, as well as a long-term goal for the seminar in general. Our long-term goal, or mission statement, is that the seminar be a class composed of Governor's School seniors who aspire to become well versed in public policy making and the regulation thereof through the study of and participation in the policy making process. Our personal goal as a class, what we hope to accomplish by the end of this school year is to make a difference in our community and highlight an important issue. |