Meet the Grade 5 students who were Waterloo's council for a day
CBC
Eight bright Grade 5 students got to take on the role of City of Waterloo council for a day, and they had some pretty big ideas on how to make their city a better place to live.
The Council for a Day contest was held for the first time in three years. The students who were selected to be the mayor and seven councillors attended Mayor Dorothy McCabe's state of the city speech Thursday morning at RIM Park and shared their ideas for the city with the audience.
Each of the students also spoke with CBC News about their visions.
Lauren Kloet, a student from Elizabeth Ziegler Public School, was chosen as mayor for the day and she said she would like to see more parks and green spaces in the city.
Ward 1 councillor for the day was Aadarsha Acharya, a student at Northlake Woods Public School. He says he'd like to find a way to bring food prices down for people in the city.
Ward 2 councillor for the day was Norman Luo, a student at Vista Hills Public School. He says he was really excited to meet the mayor. His idea to make the city better was to build more apartments.
Ward 3 councillor for the day was Ruby Haila, a student at Northlake Woods Public School. She says she'd like to see more community bonding activities, like campfires and other events.
Ward 4 councillor for the day was Norah Watt, a student at Lester B. Pearson Public School. She says she'd like to see more parks good for "big kids, little kids and people with disabilities."
Ward 5 councillor for the day was Shaun Santhosh, a student from Lexington Public School. His passion for art was evident as he presented his ideas to the crowd, getting many cheers for his ideas about the need for more public art.
Ward 6 councillor for the day was Norah Onay, a student from École élémentaire L'Harmonie. She would like to see the city add gardens on rooftops to allow bugs and other small creatures to live there and says it would also help purify the air.
Ward 7 councillor for the day was Otis Brackenridge, a student from Elizabeth Ziegler Public School. He pushed for more crossing guards because he needs to cross Weber Street to get to school, which is very busy, and he's worried someone could get hurt.
The students who took part in being council for the day were assigned wards, the city noted, and it may not reflect where they live or attend school.
In a statement, McCabe praised the students for their "enthusiasm and excitement" and said she was excited to spend the day with them to hear more of their ideas.
"Youth civic engagement is so important," McCabe said.
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