A new program to help get young people more involved with local government is being launched in Butler Township.
Butler Township Commissioner Dave Zarnick came up with the idea of a Student Municipal Representative Program. He asked for help from new Butler Area School District Superintendent Dr. Brian White to get it off the ground.
“What we’re trying to do is get young people involved in local government,” Township Commissioner Dave Zarnick said in an interview. “When we go to state conferences, we don’t see young people involved. We want them involved. And we also what to learn from them about what they are interested in. It will be a learning experience for both sides.”
School administrators will select eligible student candidates and provide those candidates to the township commissioners, who will then choose a senior and junior student to join the program. According to Zarnick, the students will then be involved with any topic discussed at meetings.
“They will sit up front with the commissioners; they will have input on any items of concern or discussion,” Zarnick said. “They will not vote and they will not attend any executive (private) sessions.”
The first students are expected to be selected and in place to join the township commissioners starting this fall.
Written By: Ryan Saeler for the Butler Radio Network
