Local students gather to plan the city’s future

Staff photo by Richard O Jones Civic Day Mayor James Hibbard gets some last minute counsel from Hamilton’s mayor-elect Pat Moeller prior to the mock city council meeting held Thursday, Nov. 19.

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By Richard O Jones, Staff Writer 11:48 PM Thursday, November 19, 2009

HAMILTON — Hamilton’s future leaders gathered Thursday, Nov. 19, to share their view of the city and get some practice in governance for the annual Civic Day.

Fifty students from the class of 2010, 25 each from Badin and Hamilton high schools, participated in the daylong event, which included tours of the 911 Communications Center, observations of Hamilton Municipal Court, mock school board and city council meetings, and a luncheon with the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs, which jointly sponsored the event.

Students began preparing for the day in September by writing application essays, which were then reviewed by teachers who selected the participants.

They began brainstorming on issues and receiving instruction in meeting protocol in October, as well as touring city facilities and meeting with fire and police personnel.

At Thursday’s mock meetings, the students introduced legislation, which included resolutions regarding Hamilton’s parking issues, bottling and selling the city’s water, increasing fines for neglected property, and proposing a “Hamilton! Pride Festival” and a Taste of Hamilton event.

Some of the resolutions were more than symbolic. The Civic Day Board of Education proposed a joint Badin/Hamilton High toy drive that has been planned for Thanksgiving weekend and a joint Fine Arts Extravaganza.

“We plan to go through with the arts event,” said Civic Day school board President Allie Pickerel, a senior at Badin. “We have already talked with our schools about it.”

Civic Day has been an annual event since the mid-1940s; past participants have included Hamilton’s Mayor-elect Pat Moeller and school board members George Jonson and Larry Bowling.

“We got to see a different side of the community, things we don’t normally see,” said Civic Day mayor James Hibbard, a Hamilton High School senior, who said the experience has not only been eye-opening, but life-changing. “As a result of this, I’m thinking about going to law school now and I’ve become very interested in politics.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2188 or rjones@coxohio.com.

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