Kids and Candidates Community Forum Held in the Auditorium

 

FRANCES BALDERRAMA Staff Writer

 

The Kids and Candidates community forum was held on Oct. 11 at the Alhambra High School Auditorium. The event was free to the public and 100 students and 320 community members were in attendance.

At the event, Alhambra City Council candidates Katherine Lee, Andrea Lofthouse-Quesada and Adele Andrade Stadler along with members of the Alhambra School Board were invited to discuss the upcoming election. This event allowed the audience to hear the candidates platforms and ask questions.

“A vote is a vote,” Senior Anthony Hu, the Public Relations Committee Lead for the Vote at 16-SGV movement, said. “A fundamental part of our democracy is that all community members can express their own opinions and be heard.”

During the round table discussion issues such as, public health, safety, schools and transportation were covered.

“Through my participation in the forum I have learned that you can make your voice heard no matter if you are under the age of 18,” Junior Jonathan Reynosa said. “I want to inspire people to create change in our community.”

Students were involved in multiple aspects of the engagement forum. They were asked to write possible questions at the forum, lead staff informational tables and take care of additional tasks throughout the entire event.

“Before getting involved in the forum, I wasn’t as interested in politics,” Junior Sharif Diallo said. “Now that I’ve learned what I believe in… my opinion of voting and politics… has increased.”

The goal of the forum was to provide opportunities to engage with local politics.