BROCKWAY, Pa. (EYT) – During the Brockway Borough Council’s June meeting, the council took the opportunity to recognize Jordan Faith, the senior student representative on the council.
“I want her to be positively recognized,” Council President Chris “Smoke” Benson said.
“We got her a plaque to commemorate her outstanding service to the Brockway community.”
Faith came on board at the beginning of her junior year at Brockway Area Junior-Senior High School. She made almost every meeting during that time, missing only for work and school events.
Faith said that her time with the council was very eye-opening.
“I learned how small-town governments like ours actually function,” she said. “There are many bits and pieces that hold it all together. I didn’t know they would have so many committees around little Brockway.”
Faith found a new appreciation for how the community is run. She said behind-the-scenes knowledge helped her understand the choices the council has to make every meeting.
“It made me more interested in government,” she added. “When I started, I wasn’t all that curious about how our government worked. Now, it’s cool to know what’s going on. I didn’t expect all that.”
Faith may not be planning on going into politics, but her knowledge of the council and experience in meetings will help her in the future.
“I’m planning on becoming a genetic counselor,” she said. “In a hospital, you need someone who talks to patients with genetic issues and counsel them on how to handle everyday life and the decisions they would have to make.”
She will attend the University of Pittsburgh. The program lasts six years, and the council position seems to have added to her confidence.
“I am ready to go and experience more of life,” she said. “I’ve had a lot of fun with the junior representative program. I’m really proud that I did it.”
Students who live in the borough limits have the privilege of representing their school at Brockway Borough Council meetings. Since 2000, the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs Junior Borough Council Person Program allows high school students to get involved in their local government by becoming junior members of their borough councils.
“I think it’s really important to understand how your community works,” Faith said. “You need to see how much work our leaders put into the community to make it good for the people who live here. Kudos to the people who work for our community.”
In August, two junior representatives will join Salem Murray when Murray takes over as the senior representative. Dominic Inzana and Delaney Wineberg both applied for the junior position, and the council accepted them both.
“The students who are interested in doing this are always busy,” Councilman Mike Martino said. “They have many things going on, so if we have two interested in doing this, we should accept them.”
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