Building peace

What does it take to build peace? Twenty-three high school and CSUMB students tackled the issue through the Summer Youth Leadership Training Project, a five-week program with El Sausal Middle School students. The two sets of students grappled with issues such as concerns about safety, being underestimated by adults, and not being able to see a real future, and they presented their explorations last month at the Breadbox Community Center.

CSUMB student Victoria Flores was one of those university students who lent her talent to explore this thorny issue. During the presentation last month at the Breadbox, she showed some of the artwork created by El Sausal students. (Photo courtesy of CSU Monterey Bay)

And speaking of weighty explorations, while Hartnell College considers axing what looks like a good program job training program, Castroville Rotary club held its annual "job shadowing" program, aimed at introducing students to a host of occupations out there: dentistry, moving and storage, restaurant work, banking, and construction management. Monterey County Supervisor Lou Calcagno and Superior Court Judge Efren Iglesia were job-shadowed by two North Monterey County students last week. Now, those are jobs surely any teenager would want to have. Right?