A little over a dozen Clermont high school students spent a snow day last week under the watchful eye of various law enforcement officials in the county.
Members of the Look to Clermont class of 2007-2008, the students put a day of time off school to work getting to know more about the criminal justice system in the county, in order to make better leaders in the future.
“Part of our job is to educate people about what this is all about,” said Judge Robert Ringland, who spoke to the teens. “The value of programs like this is it makes people more aware of their government and their responsibilities in the system. You learn about the system and the judges, because these people affect your life. You will be voting on the people who will run this long after I’ve gone over the rainbow. The more informed people you have, the better the system you’ll have.”
The program, administered by Clermont 20/20, takes two students from every county high school through a year-long program designed to introduce them to the community they grew up in. The process, said Wayne Baughman, Director of Leadership Development for Clermont 20/20, is designed to get citizens more involved in the process that keeps our society running smoothly.