A Little Help for Utah High Schools - by Nick Ramos

With an estimated ration of one high school counselor for every 300-plus students, it is needless to state that high schools all over Utah need help. With the presentation of HB 65 by Rep. Patrice Arent (D-Salt Lake), these high school counselors might get the help they need.

The “College and Career Counseling for High School Students” bill will create a pilot program for the next 3 years which will give high school seniors much needed encouragement and help getting ready for the transition to high school education.

In the House Education Committee meeting, held on January 27, 2012, Rep. Arent admitted that she saw the necessity to create this bill when she was assigned to a task force to track women’s college completion. There, she realized that Utah students have the talent, but lack the information they need to go on to higher education. She said that many of them are overwhelmed by the admissions process and financial aid paperwork, particularly those in rural high schools.

As explained in the bill text, the pilot program will deal with this issue by hiring 18 school counselor interns (Approximately 1 intern on average per 2.25 school districts, with charter schools considered as a school district) who will have specialized training to help students fill out the necessary paperwork and encourage them to pursue the best education possible.

These professionals can be hired by the school, or be interns from universities who “are getting their masters in high school counseling,” she said.

From my experience, the road to higher education can be a very difficult one. It’s not just about having good grades, but about giving students the confidence they need to seek a brighter future. Working with them from the moment they enter high school, instead of only in their last year, is critical. Also, HB 65 does not suggest that students have the work done for them, but merely gives counselors the time to adequately explain what needs to happen.

Overall, HB 65 has met a very positive response, but concerns still remain. The main one is that it requires money. Education has suffered some major cuts in the last few years, and it’s estimated that $800,000 more will have to be set aside to implement this program.

Responding to this question, Rep. Arent suggested that new money could come from outside grants, but the funding should not be reduced.

Another issue will be accountability. Since it is only a pilot program, it will be crucial to know how well the program performed by measuring the progress of the students affected against those who did not take part in the program.

No one seems to disagree that the problems highlighted by this bill are real. School counselors are currently trying their best to help students obtain all the help they need, but they are simply overworked.

The proposed bill, HB 65, will ease the stress on high school counselors and provide kids with more opportunities. With this bill leading the way, education is getting the attention it needs.

Congrats to the new MAA 2012 Legislative Interns

We are pleased to announce the new interns for the 2012 Mestizo Arts & Activism Legislative Internship Program.


2011 High School Interns

Maricela Hernandez, West High School
Sujey Rodriguez, West High School
Viri Nareja, West High School
Guadalupe Rivera, West high School
Enrique Jimenez, West High School
Jonathan Soto, West High School
Jennica Trujillo, West High School
Hugo Lopez, West High School
Sergio Brito, West High School
Daniela Chaires, West High School

University of Utah Honors College Social Justice Scholar Interns:
Pamela Portacarrero
Nick Ramos
Logan Froerer
Rebekah Jung
Van Le
Emmylou Manwill
José Hernandez
Alonso Reyna
Liliana Martinez
Tillie McInnis
Geneva Thompson

The MAA legislative Internship provides high school students with a hands-on working and learning opportunity in a legislative environment. Students learn leadership responsibilities and develop an in-depth understanding of both formal and informal aspects of the legislative process. Students work with faculty and student advisors from the University of Utah who will mentor them as they identify and track bills, work with community groups, and participate in committee meetings and other aspects of the legislative process. Student interns participate in bill analysis and tracking, spot and in-depth research, drafting of position statements, liaison work, lobbying, and liaison work.

Student interns write weekly analysis and reviews of bills they are tracking, which they post here on the MAA blog. Check back frequently to read our stories and analysis of bills and policies.

Anti-federal sentiment really dying down? -- by Pamela Portocarrero

Utah's anti-federal sentiment seems to be dying down. Or is it?

During the past two years, Utah has overwhelmingly introduced "statements," officially in the form of resolutions, explicitly telling the U.S. federal government to leave states alone. Such examples included a bill exempting Utah from implementing any type of federal health care reform, and prohibiting the national government from assigning federally protected land within our state.

So what's in store for this year's session? Surprisingly, just the opposite, at least for now.

Senate Bill 25, sponsored by Senator Van Tassell (R-Vernal), aims at making some changes to the state issued drivers license and identification card by implementing the Federal REAL ID Act of 2005. This act was signed into law by President George W. Bush back in 2005 and mandated that all states implement new drivers licenses with features that will be identical throughout all states.

The purpose behind this act was to increase security at airports and federal buildings. However, even though this may sound like a step in the right direction regarding national security, Utah did not think so two years ago in the 2010 session. Then, Representative Stephen Sandstrom (R-Orem) sponsored House Bill 234, which prohibited the state from enacting the REAL ID Act, citing arguments that it would create unnecessary expenses for the citizens of Utah, and that the federal government was in violation of the federalism principles stated in the 10th amendment by mandating all states to implement this act.

It was a perfect example of the very common anti-federal sentiment that has been reigning over Capitol Hill for the past couple of years.

Fast forward two years and we have Senator Van Tassell wanting to implement this federal mandate. Is the state of Utah finally agreeing to follow federal law, or is there an additional motive for such change?

Maybe Senator Van Tassel is trying to turn around Utah's anti-federal thinking by complying with its laws, but that still does not clearly explain the remaining provisions attached to Senate Bill 25. For example, the bill would not allow a person to have in his or her possession both a drivers license and identification card.

While we await some more clarifications on this bill one thing is certain: the introduction of Senate Bill 25 reminded us that Utah's legislators can curse the federal government's involvement in our state one year, and welcome its presence in our laws the next.