YOUTH GET A LOOK AT GOVERNMENT

High school students took the reins of government Friday, rejecting a request for an election on riverboat gambling but approving a proposed go-cart track at a mock Cape Girardeau city council meeting.

It was all part of Youth in Government Day, sponsored by the six Optimist clubs in Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

About 75 students from Cape Girardeau Central, Notre Dame, Delta, Oak Ridge and Jackson high schools participated in the event.

This is the 10th year for the event, said Tom M. Meyer, co-chairman of the event.

Students were assigned roles in the Cape Girardeau and Jackson city governments, ranging from mayor to fire chief. Other students played the roles of county officials.

This year, for the first time, four federal positions were included in the role-playing event: public defender, U.S. magistrate, U.S. marshal, and assistant U.S. attorney.

Meyer said students were matched to positions that interested them.

The whole idea, he said, is to give the students a better understanding of government and how it works. "A lot of these kids weren't aware of what it takes to operate a government."

Central and Notre Dame high school juniors were involved in the hour-long mock council meeting at the Cape Girardeau City Hall.

The student council dealt with issues that have come up before the real city council.

In rejecting a request by the Downtown Redevelopment Corp. to hold a special election on riverboat gambling, the majority of council members concluded that the decision should rest with the city government, not the voters.

"I think we were elected as city council members to make decisions for our town," said Central High student and "councilman" Jessica Anderson.

"I personally think riverboat gambling will not benefit our town in the long run," she added.

But others argued for putting the issue before the voters. "We are just a selected few," said Notre Dame student Heather Meyer.

As to a go-cart track, the council members said they liked the idea.

Anderson said it's a "family-oriented" business that "would be a real benefit to the community."

The real city council put the same issue on hold earlier in the week in the face of opposition from residents who live near the proposed site at the corner of Kingshighway and Lexington.

The students conducted business with City Attorney Warren Wells and Assistant City Manager Doug Leslie looking on.

Meyer and Councilman Melvin Gateley portrayed citizens, appearing before the council to voice their views.

The students said they came away from the mock council meeting with a better understanding of local government.

"I learned a lot," said Central High student Tricia Keller, who served as mayor.

Keller said the role playing made her realize that being on the city council "is not an easy job."

April Thompson, Notre Dame student and "city manager," said the whole affair convinced her of one thing. "I don't think politics is in my blood."

Thompson said she had always heard about how government continually raises taxes. But she said that in the students' briefings with city officials she learned that many times City Hall is simply responding to state and federal mandates.

She said she learned something else as well. "It's hard not to laugh at people when they come up and say weird things."

Council member Ryan Eftink of Notre Dame said the whole event shows that our system of government works well.

As to Anderson, she had no trouble discussing the issues. "I am very opinionated," she noted.

Meyer said, "I had a lot of fun. It was really neat."

For Todd Matzat, a Central High student, participating in the mock council meeting was "an incredible thing."

Matzat said he had never been inside the Cape Girardeau City Hall before, and it was interesting to learn about the inner workings of city government.