Current political landscape sparks student interest

Autumn Froitland

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During the time that students are in elementary school, they learn about the history of our and other nations. But the older the students become, the more current information they begin to learn and the more they understand. Some students may watch the news with their parents, or learn about events during holidays, or they use social media. Everyone has their own opinion and views and by keeping up to date with current events, you can continue to develop your opinions.

 

Seniors are required to take a government course to graduate and due to the very controversial system of government that we currently have, many students have furthered their interests in politics.

 

Imagine Prep Senior, Alec Avey, enjoys politics and tries to keep up with the current events using all social media platforms.  

 

There are multiple aspects of politics that make Avey intrigued.

 

“I’m mostly interested in how we can develop our country and the debates on what we need to do to stay on track,” Avey said.

Autumn Froitland
Senior Alec Avey

The current system has created a lot of controversy and Avey shared his thoughts on it.

 

“I think the two party system is kind of broken and I wish we could get to the path where other countries are going,” Avey said. “But I just don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

 

Senior, Kiara Valdes, has had a interest for politics since middle school and stays up to date on current events with all platforms.

 

“I do keep up with politics, Twitter mostly for international because the news really doesn’t report on things other than America,” Valdes said. “But I watch the news, mostly MSNBC and CNN.”

Autumn Froitland
Senior Kiara Valdes

Valdes shared her thoughts on our current political system.

 

“I think it’s broken and corrupt and there’s so many things wrong with it,” Valdes said.

 

Both Avey and Valdes wouldn’t mind pursuing a job in politics. They feel it is important that students keep themselves up to date with everything happening in our nation.

 

Senior, Alicia Vozza, has found that politics gives her the opportunities to learn more about other’s thoughts and also share her own.

 

“Politics gives me an opportunity to express my beliefs and learn others beliefs. Politics is the door into deeper levels of thought that aren’t normally talked about,” Vozza said.

 

Vozza thinks the current political system is working but also thinks people from all parties should try and support it.  

 

“I support the current system because it’s nice to have my beliefs finally reflected in public policy. I enjoy the transparency that has come with the new administration,” Vozza said. “I wish people would give it a chance before judging it, just because it isn’t their political party. A political party is not as binding as people make them out to be.”

Katrina Ortiz
Alicia Vozza confidently strikes a heroic pose before her interview.

Vozza uses all different types of platforms to gather as much information as possible.

 

“I use as many new sources as I can. I follow news sources on social media, like Instagram and Facebook, and watch the news every morning and night,” Vozza said. “I use FOX News to get the details of the latest news, and political commentators, like Tomi Lahren and Dinesh D’Souza, to get background information on the recent events.”

 

Sophomore Tayah Rubio enjoys learning about what is happening in other places.

 

“Politics give me an opportunity to learn about what is going on in the world, and come to a conclusion on what my beliefs are and to hear the sides of others,” Rubio said.

 

Rubio thinks that we should come together to solve our issues.

 

“I think our nation is divided. We shouldn’t focus on what your political beliefs are, but rather band together and connect our diverse brains to create a solution instead of making the problems,” Rubio said.

 

Rubio uses different media platforms when looking for specific things.

 

“I try to keep up with everything that’s going on in the world. I watch the news at night to see what I missed during the day,” Rubio said. “Channels like Today or Fox give me the current events, but for more detailed responses I read articles from “The Washington Post” and “Politico”.

Autumn Froitland
Rubio, a sophomore at IPS, believes it is important for people of all political beliefs to come together.

 

Even though the political world is sometimes a challenge, Rubio feels that job in politics isn’t completely out of the question.

 

“I would totally go into politics. I think that there are a lot of problems that are not discussed just because they are overshadowed by gossip topics,” Rubio said.