The Downey city council held its very first Student Government Day in which seven Associated Student Body members attended an informative event on April 26. Along with the Vikings were the leaders of Warren High School and Columbus Continuation School.
In hopes of learning more regarding the aspects of city government, each student shadowed a city official for one hour and had the opportunity to further understand the job of their respective representative. Current ASB treasurer Rebekah Jin was paired up with the Director of Public Works, John Oskoui, who taught her about roads, sewer system, and water.
“I didn’t have much of an interest in architecture and engineering until I discovered how applicable those fields are to everyday life,” Jin said.
The foremost important part of this event was the mock city council meeting. After learning about the duties of their specific officials, each participant was handed a report to research for one hour. Subsequently, the experts swapped places with the undergraduates as they became the spectators while the students held a city council meeting.
“There were some mistakes and confusion along the way, of course, but the adults were impressed by the way a lot of us were able to take on their jobs,” Jin said.
Certainly, this unique experience allowed the student leaders to gain knowledge about the city’s administration. It also lead to discoveries on the similarities between the two as junior class Vice-President Kimberly Matamoros discerned how their leadership team is in resemblance with the council.
“I learned there are a lot of issues brought up to the council by the residents of Downey, and it’s not so easy always saying yes to everyone,” Matamoros said. “The city council has to overlook every issue brought up and make sure the right decisions are made for the community.”
The ASB members experienced a rewarding opportunity and were exceptionally gladdened by this occurrence.
“It was an amazing experience,” ASB Commissioner of Pep, Spirit, and Assembly Lisa Guerrero said. “It opened my eyes to the things our city council goes through. I loved it!”
Being a leader proved to be a difficult task; they realized that their duty as a part of student council is very important as they continue to serve the students and staff.
