HSLP 2009: Day 5, July 15

High School Leaders Program Class of 2009
Day 5— Wednesday, July 15
Reported by: Benjamin Corbett of Lakeland High School, Suffolk
 
     Today we practically woke up at the crack of dawn to get on a bus to go to Alexandria.  The bus ride there was a fun experience for a few of those that decided to stay awake.  Most of those who decided to stay awake entertained themselves by watching movies or listening to music. Those that watched movies were highly disappointed when laptops died before the end of the movies. This was a common occurrence.
     We arrived in Alexandria at approximately nine o’clock. We were all enticed by the shops in Old Town that were offering delicious foods at the ice cream shops and colorful clothing at the boutiques. We pulled up to City Hall amazed by the fountain out front. We were hurried in to find Frank Fannon waiting for us. As soon as I got into the room, I went to the front to introduce Mr. Fannon. After I sat down he talked to us about his district and about local government.
     After Mr. Fannon we had Amy Gardner talk to us about the media and how it is involved in politics. She told us about media bias and trends in newspapers. Her discussion was very interesting and informative. Then we had lunch and walked to the waterfront and looked across the water to D.C.
     After lunch we heard from Delegate Adam Ebbin who discussed the major differences between the state and local governments. After Delegate Ebbin, Delegate Steve Shannon came and spoke on the office of Attorney General.  We all had an engaging discussion about the position he is running for. After Delegate Shannon, we had our last speaker of the day, Delegate Bob Brink. He discussed Virginia’s major issues such as transportation. 
     After our last speaker, we headed out to the bus which was taking us to our next destination, dinner. We ate dinner at Hard Times Café, which had an old-time sports bar feel to it. While we waited for food, we enjoyed free games of pool. The food there was great, and after dinner it was back to the bus for our trip back to UVA. The bus was much noisier on this trip so it was hard to concentrate on the readings I was trying to do, but nonetheless I got it done.
     Once we arrived back at Bice everyone practically ran to the door to get in. As soon as we were in everyone was grouping up to do numerous things, such as blog, work on group projects, or work on presentations. All in all I would say that it was a productive day. We learned a lot from the numerous speakers we heard throughout the day.  I am stoked that tomorrow is a casual day.

— Benjamin Corbett, Suffolk