Honoring Senator Ed Mayne

A special monument in honor of the late Senator Ed Mayne was presented to his wife, Senator Karen Mayne, last month by the Polynesian Youth Group as part of the Samoan Heritage Festival. The monument will have a permanent home at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center. Senator Karen Mayne spoke at the event. For full details, click here to view a recent article published in the West Valley Journal.

Visit your State Parks

by Senator Ross Romero
District  7

Senator Romero and son with Mike Johnson, Park Manager of Jordanelle State Park.

Jordanelle Marina and Campground

Jordanelle Reservoir

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to go camping with my family and some friends at Jordanelle State Park.  While I was in the Park, I had the chance to meet Mike Johnson, the Park Manager.  Mr.Johnson was nice enough to tell me about the Park and explain what he had been working on for the Park.  Currently, the visitors’ center is being converted into a much more functional event center.  Once open, the event center will be available for rental so more individuals will be able to utilize the facility and enjoy the views of the lake and mountain side. 

Mr. Johnson also explained how he organized a fireworks display over the water on July 12^th.  This event will be repeated in the years to come, which should again draw visitors to the Park.  He expressed a desire to improve and groom trails around the Park and perhaps bring in some recreational activities like a zip line to be enjoyed by the Park’s visitors.  I appreciated the time Mr. Johnson took to explain his efforts and desires for the Park.  I think he was doing a great job attempting to blend making sure the Park was open and utilized to the public while at the same time making sure the environmental protections and proper maintenance were being enforced.

I hope you and your family have had the opportunity to enjoy a Utah State Park this summer.  If you have not or would like more information, I would encourage you to visit: www.stateparks.utah.gov.  The Parks’ website provides information about trails, boating, golfing and OHVs.  It is a wonderful resource for what is going on in our State’s Parks and even includes what the weather is in the Parks.  Finally, the website offers opportunity to learn about the family fun activity of geocaching–a high-tech treasure hunt using a global positioning satellite (GPS) unit. 

I hope you continue to have a fun and safe summer and look forward to hearing how you enjoyed your Utah State Park visit.

Second in the Country in 2008

Slated to “kick off” the third week of every September and run throughout the school year, America’s Legislators Back to School Program gives elected officials in all 50 states the opportunity to meet personally with their young constituents and to answer questions, share ideas, listen to concerns and impart a greater understanding of the legislative processes necessary for developing effective public policy and engaged citizens.

UTAH IS SECOND IN THE COUNTRY WITH 88% OF LEGISLATORS VISITING SCHOOLS IN THEIR DISTRICTS DURING THE 2007-2008 SCHOOL YEAR. Massachusetts is first with 92%, California is third with 77%, Virginia is fourth with 64%, and Nebraska is fifth with 57%.

Congratulations to our 104 legislators and to Shelley Day in the Office of Legislative Research & General Counsel who coordinates the program for the Utah Legislature.

Sponsored by the National Conference of State Legislatures, the program is designed to teach young people–the nation’s future voters and leaders–what it’s like to be a state legislator: the processes, the pressures, and the debate, negotiation and compromise that are the very fabric of representative democracy. The program is emphasized as a bipartisan event. Legislators of both political parties are urged to participate in this national event and help bring civics to life for young people.

Aerial View of Capitol

I snapped this great aerial photo of the Capitol Complex from my son’s airplane last month. -Janeen-

Guidance for High School Students

by Senator Patricia Jones
Assistant Senate Minority Whip

As Utah’s students reach the high school graduation line, many are asking themselves questions about what school to choose, which degree to pursue and what career path to follow. Sadly, our current system has neither the time nor the tools to supply the answers or the necessary guidance to our students.

I was shocked in a recent legislative committee meeting to hear that on average, there are more than 400 students per guidance counselor in Utah. The problem is even worse in high-growth areas such as South Jordan Middle School where 649 students are assigned to one counselor.

Such impossible ratios leave overloaded counselors with only an average of 10 minutes to spend with a single student in an entire year of high school. That’s simply not enough time to create a relationship or give meaningful guidance.

At the same time, the duties of counselors have become muddied as they are overburdened by undefined tasks and test administration. The bottom line is these counselors don’t have the time to offer tailored goals and plans for students with varying interests.

That leaves counselors dishing out the same university plan for all students, largely ignoring other career paths or vocational training that is much needed in the workforce.

We need to dedicate them to their purpose, which is to help our students become the best they can be and to prepare them to fill the niches that our future marketplace demands.

I’m working on a comprehensive guidance counselor bill for the 2009 Legislative session, but the solution will take more than government action and state money. We all need to start talking to each other about how to give our students better answers and guidance. It’s an effort that will require the cooperation of teachers, parents, students, counselors, government representatives and business leaders.

The problem is these groups don’t know how to help because the structure isn’t set up. Likewise, parents want to help but they’re not sure where the shortages are, and students are just going day to day trying to get good grades. Someone needs to take leadership in this to connect all the pieces together.

Mayor Dennis Webb of Holladay is a visionary in this kind of collaboration. He has set up his own city education committee and encourages city council members and parents to get involved. Perhaps we as a state could take a queue from Mayor Webb’s efforts and create a similar statewide education advisory council to facilitate discussions between schools.

Helping our students make more informed choices also means starting the conversation much earlier than high school. Many parents wait until their children are in 11th grade to start thinking about college. At the final hour, they try to help their children the best they can, only to realize they haven’t saved enough money, their kids haven’t taken the right courses and they have no idea what the market demands are.

More informed curriculum choices as early as elementary school could help students better prepare. If engineering is predicted to be a hot job market in the coming years, a young student could load up on math courses or a customized high school curriculum to ensure he or she has the proper prerequisites for college.

Currently, parents don’t know what kind of jobs will be available for their sons and daughters when they enter the workforce. A systemic approach could get this information to parents, who can then guide their children into classes, schools and jobs that will be viable in the future.

The business community is key to this system-wide approach because they are in the best position to predict future economic needs. They know what skills are needed, which areas of the market are inundated and which ones will be searching for new talent.

As a member of the Salt Lake Chamber Board and a professional focus group moderator, I hear from business leaders all the time about students who have a degree but don’t have the kind of qualifications that companies want. They may be lacking in anything from technical skills to common workplace etiquette.

Business leaders tell me they are excited to help these students get a better grasp on what they can do now to prepare to be a viable member of Utah’s workforce.

If we work as one, we can ensure students are moving into the path that is fulfilling for them, but also meeting our state’s economic demands. Together, we can give our students the answers they need.

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