Students get taste of legislative process at seminar hosted by Sen. Brooks

Nov. 14—GREENVILLE — High school students from Mercer, Lawrence and Crawford counties got a taste Wednesday of what it's like to be a state senator.

More 120 students from 24 schools went to Thiel College, where state Sen. Michele Brooks led them through several activities to give them the senatorial experience and perhaps to inspire them to leadership roles someday.

"Today is about the students getting a first-hand look to see how their government functions," Brooks said. "I am always so impressed at the questions the kids ask. Every year there are always different opinions and I love to see how they compromise."

Students were assigned to one of five groups, appropriations, education, finance, health and human services and state government. From there they would pick a bill they wanted to discuss. They then debated whether they should amend it or approve it as is.

"Today they put us into different groups to discuss certain bills and vote on them so we can see what it's like to be a member of the senate," Ellie Kellick, a student from Meadville, said. "I loved it and love the idea of what we have been doing."

After, members of the group presented their work to the rest of the students as a whole senate. Students could then ask questions or propose different amendments, then they voted wither to approve the bill.

"I was in the appropriations committee, so I was able to help sort out the budget we would be presenting," said Caleb Marwood, another student in attendance. "I really enjoyed the event. It gives you a good chance to get involved without having to go too far."

An example of a topic debated was to remove the school property tax on people above the age of 65. Students debated where else the money would come from, how people may find loopholes in that and whether, overall, it was a good idea. After roughly a 20-minute debate, the majority of the students voted to pass it.

"The value of this event is truly letting these kids think through these problems and see how it affects real-world people," Brooks said. "I want to thank the schools, students and teachers for their participation. I also want to thank Thiel College for their involvement and support."