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“I am big on citizenship and civic participation,” he said. “I just want students to see that even at a young age, even though they are not voters, there are other ways and more influential ways to impact their community and bring about change and be the change they want to see.”
Officials from Springfield city, Clark County and the judicial system all attended the presentations and then were asked to score them. Students had an opportunity to explain their ideas and why they feel it would make the area a better place to live.
“Our students are able to see and make connections with people in government who actually deal with those issues they are presenting,” Hambrick said.
Brooklyn Richardson is an 11th-grade student at the school and her group took on the overdose problem.
“We are presenting our policies to different officials and people who want to see a change in Springfield and even the state,” she said.
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Richardson’s group argued that Narcan should be limited to people who abuse drugs because of the cost that taxpayers on the hook. She said her group believes users should have to pay the city back for the Narcan.
Hambrick said the project helps students learn about government by becoming active in it.
“It helps students to get into the world of public policy and see their role as an active citizen and participating in that policy cycle in order to bring about change in their community,” he said.
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