More than 100 students and parents flocked to the Cupertino Community Hall on Oct. 22 for the Saratoga Youth Commission and Cupertino Teen Commission event “Pizza and Politics: A Political Forum For Teens.”
Attendees listened to candidates for the Cupertino Union School Board, Saratoga Union School Board and California State Assembly District 28 discuss important issues such as Common Core integration and the ways in which they would address problems facing teens today, such as bullying and tenure.
Sophomore Mitali Shanbhag, a member of the Saratoga Youth Commission, was excited to see youth so interested and willing to get involved in local politics.
“The event had an amazingly unexpected turnout, and I was so proud to see so many teenagers present. I think it really shows how our generation is becoming more and more involved in community as the years go by,” Shanbhag said. “It’s also good to see that teenagers are willing to put themselves out there, in order to make our society a better place.”
The event showed how aware students are about the major issues facing not only Saratoga, but other school districts as well. Taking initiative so early will enable students to be more educated by the time they actually reach voting age.
“To see high schoolers question many of the candidates with issues that are really important to all of us as students shows that we are willing to stand up for what we believe in, and even though we don't have an official voice yet, we know how to make sure our opinion matters,” said Shanbhag.
Although many students were enticed to attend the event by the promise of extra credit, they all gained something more important: familiarity with political topics early on.
“The sooner you start to become educated on the issues, the more time you’ll have to learn about them and be able to make educated choices,” State Assembly candidate Chuck Page said. “Even if you are not eligible to vote yet, getting involved is the only way to make a difference.”
The event was televised on local Saratoga and Cupertino news channels such as KSAR, and was also posted on YouTube. Pizza and Politics revealed the candidates’ relevance to students and their potential impact on the school system.
“Being able to see so many familiar faces running for school board like my friend's parents and even former teachers was really attention grabbing and made me more interested in what the School Board actually does and what they're planning to do,” junior Anant Rajeev said.