Eleven fourth and fifth grade students were awarded for their law ideas.
Eleven students from schools within the 170th Legislative District have been chosen as the winners in the “There Ought to be a Law” contest sponsored by state Rep. Martina White.
“All of the submissions were well-thought-out,” White said. “It’s a reflection on the parents and teachers in our district who are committed to their children’s education. This is so important to our community, as their future is our future.”
The contest entrants were from fourth and fifth grades. The schools that participated were William Loesche, Stephen Decatur, Philadelphia Academy Charter, MaST Community Charter, St. Anselm, St. Christopher and Calvary Christian Academy.
The winners are:
• Leah Disbot, fourth grade, St. Christopher (Increase signs to create awareness for drivers in residential areas for people with disabilities)
• Gabrielle Bowes, fifth grade, St. Christopher (Seatbelts on all school buses)
• Marwa Ali, fourth grade, Loesche (Kids who drop out of school should go into the military to learn a trade)
• Eva Zeytunya, fifth grade, Loesche (Ban bullying to reduce depression)
• Isabella Mucerino, fourth grade, Decatur (Create a program to instill leadership skills starting at a young age.)
• Ileana Santiago, fifth grade, Decatur (Install security systems in all schools)
• Timothy Crozier, fourth grade, St. Anselm (Develop a program that creates funding for hospitals through rerouting tax dollars)
• Mackenzie Barratt, fifth grade, St. Anselm (Create a database of every child’s fingerprints for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children)
• Riley McWilliams, fourth grade, Philadelphia Academy Charter (Reduce pollution through carpooling)
• John Murphy, fourth grade, MaST Community Charter School (Students must do 20 hours of community service to move on to the next grade level)
• Jessica Leinenbach, fifth grade, MaST (Schools should do at least three lockdown drills a year to promote school safety and have an efficient emergency plan in place)
• Dakota Paton, fifth grade, Calvary Christian (Enable books of faith to be allowed in every school)
“The subjects tackled by the students were varied and challenging,” White said. “I believe we may have one or two future legislators in our community.”
The winners will be invited to the Capitol to have lunch with White and tour the historic building. ••
