Newsroom Archive for 07/21, 2008

High School Leaders Program Class of 2008
Day 9, Sunday, July 20
Reported by: Benjamin Ries and Mary Kathryn Atkinson

     After a long week of informative classes, we finally got a day off.  Well, sort of.  By the end of the day we were all hard at work, trying to complete the first draft of our group projects, which are due Tuesday.  For most, the day began around noon after a rare chance to sleep in.  Many Sorensenites took the opportunity to do their own laundry while some bribed others to do it for them.  After getting up, everyone made sure to put on swim gear for the day’s tubing excursion.
     At noon we left for the James River and ate lunch on the bus.  We were surprised to find our transportation to be an adorable city bus rather than the typical Abbott bus we were used to.  After a 45-minute drive, we arrived at the James River.  Some of us forgot closed-toed water shoes and had to resort to wearing old sneakers instead.  We put on some sunscreen (although, as many found out later, not nearly enough) and started down the river.
     We soon learned that the river was rather shallow and contained many vicious rocks.  Nevertheless, the gentle current carried us slowly down the James, giving us all a chance to relax and clear our minds.  As we traveled through the three-and-a-half hour trip some grew restless, including Richard, who successfully knocked Madison out of her float.  The two Marries (Mary Kathryn and Maribel) finished at the head of the pack, followed by the nature-loathing Martina, Ladi, Joi, Nathalie, and Amber.
     Our exhausted group sat back and enjoyed the drive back to Charlottesville.  Some even enjoyed a quick nap.  Upon returning, we were greeted with a delicious feast of Chinese food.  Everyone (hopefully) took a shower and spent the evening working on group projects.  Quite a few of us were sunburned all over from spending several hours in the midday sun.  All pains aside, it was a great day, and we are looking forward to our final week!
— Benjamin Ries of Roanoke, Patrick Henry High School Class of 2009
     Mary Kathryn Atkinson of Java, Chatham Hall Class of 2010

High School Leaders Program Class of 2008
Day 10, Monday, July 21
Reported by: Ladi Smith and Kevin Xiao

     The day began as any other day, except for one thing.  Some would say that the special thing is the fact that everyone was wearing business-professional clothing for the group picture. But one glance at the group showed evidence of sunburns on everyone; the tubing excursion left battle marks on backs and burns on fronts.  The group trooped to the classroom at 8:45am. The lecture/seminar with Dr. Shields picked up where we had left off the previous Saturday:  do we, as citizens, value the security of our communities or do we value the liberty that the Constitution provides us?  We then discussed the Dilon's Rule, where we got into a debate if local governments should only have the power that the state grants them, or if they should have all powers except those that the state reserves for itself. Both sides made convincing arguments.
     After the deliberations by our class, we looked into the different flavors of local government (city council with manager/mayor, town council with manager, and board of supervisors with county manager) as well as the staggered-terms phenomenon and small councils. We also looked at annexation and two sections of the Voting Rights Act.  Then the fun, big debate came: "strong" mayor or "weak" mayor? The class was evenly split, and an ad hoc panel was created (Team Mitch-David for the "strong" mayor and Team Colin-Emily for the "weak "mayor).  Again, both sides made amazing arguments and analyzed the issue thoroughly.  In the end, we finally realized the real world of politics and came to a bipartisan solution – neither was better.
     After our morning session and our delicious lunch (we Sorensen students never get tired of sandwiches!), we listened to Gordon Walker, our guest speaker for today.  He has been the executive director and chief executive officer of the Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA) since 1982. He educated us on aging and the rising danger America’s health care system faces if we do not make drastic changes while we still have the chance. He told us about the 2020 plan which, among other things, promotes coordinated and accessible health care, supports maximum independence for the elderly, and enhances transportation opportunities for the elderly.  (Props to Mitch for knowing the details of the book Boomsday).  We were also introduced to the budget game by our professor. In this game we face the task of balancing the state budget. We were put on either the Senate or the House teams and must collectively work together to balance the budget and make it as fair as possible. We nominated chairman (Ladi for the House, Emma for the Senate), a recorder (Andrew for the House, Khadeeja for the Senate) and also an assistant recorder (Caitlin for the House, Sirishia for the Senate).
     After our speaker  talked to us and the budget game had been announced, the Sorenson group went to the Rotunda to take our individual and class photos. While standing on the Rotunda steps, we were all instructed to run down it while the photographer took the picture. The group flocked down the stairs; girls weary of their heels, guys tired of their ties! Tonight we will finish by working fiercely on our culminating projects.

— Ladi Smith of Charlottesville, St.Anne's Belfield School Class of 2009
     Kevin Xiao of Glen Allen, Maggie Walker Governor’s School Class of 2009