Youth / News for the 18-and-under crowd

Middle- and high school students with ideas to improve the city have taken their proposals to City Council members, who said they will give them serious consideration.

Their proposals, developed at the 1997 La Habra Kids Summit, calls for the following:

* A job-locater service that would post jobs on a board at the La Habra Community Center.

* Extending the citywide curfew on weekend nights to midnight for anyone older than 13.

* A hotline that youngsters could call for free advice about personal problems or crises.

* Appointing a junior city council to give officials direction on youth issues.

* A tutoring or recreation center in a central location.

* More free community fairs and public concerts at local schools.

* Stricter code enforcement to encourage businesses to improve their storefronts.

* More honors courses at school.

* Distribution of a card with hotline numbers that students could keep in their wallets.

* Talks by police officers about students’ rights.

* A requirement that no student could graduate from high school without passing an ethics class.

The students also told city officials what they think is wrong in La Habra.

Among their complaints were that school bathrooms are filthy, that too few after-school athletic and academic activities are offered, and that libraries should offer longer hours.

They also said parks need to be cleaned up and that more choices should be offered for youngsters to congregate.

Many of the suggestions would be costly to implement, officials said, and the city cannot afford to follow all of them now. But council members said they will consider all of them during budget planning for next year and beyond.

The proposals were drawn up by Patrick Newton, of Washington Middle School; Adam Hendrix, Rancho-Starbuck Intermediate; Tiffany Dacuycuy, Imperial Middle; Amber Smith, Our Lady of Guadalupe School; Alisa Bloom and Anna Purcell, Whittier Christian High; Sheryl Bender, Sonora High School; and Ryan Knowles, La Habra High.