Long Beach was taken over by teenagers yesterday morning as the youngest City Council ever took their seats for a ten-minute meeting. That is, once they figured out how to use the microphones.
There were about twenty students from Jordan High School and the Long Beach Job Corps Center run by the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network, which provides opportunities like this one to students interested in local careers. More than 300 students participated around the city at business ranging from the Long Beach Airport, Fire Department and Home Depot. The students were given a tour of City Hall chambers, sat in Councilmembers’ seats and conducted a mock meeting with extremely important issues.
Item #1: There’s not enough parking at Jordan High School.
City Auditor Laura Doud took a few minutes to address the students and encouraged them to reach for the stars.
“The two things that equal success are when preparation meets opportunity,” she said. “Go after your passion, go after the thing you love. If you do what you love you never have to work a day in your life.”
Serving as Mayor during the mock meeting was Jordan High School senior Kiara Martin, who hopes to attend Cal State Long Beach in the Fall and will pursue a degree in political science. Her ultimate dream: to become a Long Beach City Councilmember in her own 9th District. Martin was very excited after getting a taste of her dream.
“It encourages me and makes the reality seem more reachable,” she said. Currently serving as Jordan’s ASB President, Martin already has plans for action when she one day takes her Council seat.
“The first thing I would do is build a new image for the city,” she said. “By getting rid of graffiti, cracking down on bad behavior and recreating a better school district.”
Watching her command the meeting from the Mayor’s seat yesterday, you get the feeling that Martin will have her chance.
By Ryan ZumMallen, with additional reporting by Ricklyn Hukriede
Disclosure: lbpost.com co-founder Shaun Lumachi is under contract with the Office of the Long Beach City Auditor and is a board member of the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network.