Press Release
Contact:  Arlene Hulten
Date:  October 20, 2008

Representative Rick Larsen Visits Students at Cavelero Mid High

On Monday, October 13, Representative Rick Larsen met with School Board members David Iseminger and Rod Mace, Superintendent David Burgess, and Cavelero Principal John Gebert to tour the new school, visit with students, and hear the top legislative priorities of the school district.

Before fielding the really tough questions from students, Legislative Representative/ School Board member Iseminger reviewed the district’s top priorities that included two main issues: Supporting and signing on as a co-sponsor of House Resolution Bill 648 – the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind Act, which provides solutions to the unintended consequences of the act; and second, honor the Federal commitment to fund 40% of Special Education costs (currently funded at approximately 15%).

Meeting with Cavelero 8th and 9th grade students in the library for over an hour, Representative Larsen discovered that they were armed with lots of direct questions covering a wide range of topics.  Starting with an overarching question about the main responsibilities of being a Congressional Representative, Larsen shared that voting on bills, defending the constitution, listening to his constituents, and making informed decisions were his top priorities.

Economic issues, jobs, and the financial rescue package (called “bail out” by students) led to an in depth discussion about the value of stocks, the ability of banks to lend money, and future work to redefine market place rules.

Students were keenly interested in energy and conservation topics including drilling for oil in Alaska and the availability oil from NPR (National Petroleum Reserve) verses drilling in near by ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge).  Representative Larsen drew a picture of Alaska, depicting where the two locations were, and shared that the infrastructure to support increased drilling at NPR is in place, including pipelines and the availability of additional leases to drill.  Larsen stated that he supported drilling in NPR to fill the gaps in demand while finding solution to reduce the country’s dependence on oil.

In fielding a question about the demands of his job and motivation Larsen shared a quote with students from a past coach, “Always compare yourself to your own best self,” and encouraged students to think about that and do the same.  On the topic of future work, he said, “Get involved in school, student government and activities and find out what it is that motivates you, what you really like to do, and plan accordingly.”