Cornwall Junior Council to promote youth engagement with local politics

This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project.

Cornwall Borough Council has resurrected a program to teach local kids about government and politics: the Junior Council Program.

Councilman Thomas Burton, who brought the idea to the council’s attention, explained that each year, one local kid will be selected to shadow a council member.

“It’s to encourage our younger individuals to take notice to their community so that they can be involved in their community,” he said, explaining his hopes that participants may subsequently volunteer for community services like fire protection or recreation planning.

After four years in the program — attending council meetings, committee meetings, and other governmental duties — that child will write an essay explaining what they learned in their time as a Junior Council member.

“Hopefully we’ll be able to instill in them that this is very serious business,” Burton explained, noting that participating students would need to be able to consistently attend meetings. “It is very serious, because it affects all of yous in the community.”

While the details have not been ironed out yet, Burton said that a child’s graduation from the program will likely come with a scholarship, to be used for continued education like college or a technical school.

On April 14, council agreed to send a letter to the Cornwall-Lebanon School District to solicit applications from Cornwall eighth-graders, who will write essays explaining why they would like to be selected for the program.

However, residents suggested council open the opportunity up to homeschooled and privately schooled kids, which Burton said he was agreeable towards.

A similar program previously existed in Cornwall, with the mother of one of its graduates present Monday. She explained that her daughter, now a physician, took a lot from the program. She also said the experience helped her daughter stand out during college applications.

The program was approved unanimously by council members, and applications for the program will soon be open.