While it is important for everyone to be engaged in addressing “How Shall We Grow?”, being actively involved is of particular relevance for today’s youth as their entire professional careers will play out over the next 50 years. At Cypress Creek High School, senior Economic Honors Students under the guidance of their teacher, Pam Ellis, have spent much of this semester looking at the issues around the “How Shall We Grow?” project.

“We are the ones who will ultimately be affected the most by the decisions being made today,” said Yisel Tejeda, who took the initiative to contact myregion.org and attended the February 9, 2007 meeting of the Board of Directors. “ For example, public transportation barely exists now in Central Florida. I can only imagine how much it will affect us in 50 years from now if we do not take action to change our growth policies and procedures regarding such issues.”

To gain a better understanding of the key issues facing Central Florida, the students were assigned to watch the five nights of prime time television programming that was broadcast from January 22-26 on WMFE-TV and WKMG- TV. They then had to complete the on-line survey and write a three-page report that included a brief description of each episode of the programming, which scenario they would prefer and why.

That alone would have served as a great lesson about what is happening in their community, but it was just the beginning.

After completing their initial report, students were given 30 days in which they had to complete a project reflective of something about “How Shall We Grow?” One caveat was that these projects had to include some kind of community outreach.

The result was a flurry of activity during which Cypress Creek students created fliers, posters, videos and web sites designed to spread the word about “How Shall We Grow?” and the importance of being involved in the community.

Many students went door-to-door in their neighborhoods talking to people about the future while others went out and asked complete strangers (even in one case a group of homeless people) about what was important to them. The focuses varied based on the interest of each student, but the general theme was that everyone needs to be aware about what is happening and have the opportunity to be involved if they choose.

After talking with area residents, many of the students were surprised at how many people did not see the value of being engaged in their community.  Many relayed that some people told them they were just worried about today and didn't have time to be concerned about the future. Others didn't like what was happening around them, but didn't think they could make a difference.

Ultimately, what the students learned through their experience is that by being aware and engaged in your community, you can make a difference. They felt that through their efforts, they had not only become better informed themselves on what is happening in their community, but they had also made a direct contribution toward enhancing their quality of life for the future.

At the myregion.org Board of Directors meeting on April 13, 2007, Ms. Ellis and several of the students will provide the board with an overview of their efforts.