WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.960 Have I put you at ease? Have I told enough jokes? 00:00:02.020 --> 00:00:03.379 Have I gotten familiar enough? No, you've done 00:00:03.379 --> 00:00:05.580 a good job with the introduction. I mean, it's 00:00:05.580 --> 00:00:08.460 a very welcoming introduction. Okay, good. All 00:00:08.460 --> 00:00:10.460 right. We just want you to feel comfortable. 00:00:10.699 --> 00:00:15.160 Yeah. Welcome to County Connection. the official 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:17.440 podcast of the Washington State Association of 00:00:17.440 --> 00:00:19.420 Counties, where we dive into the legislative 00:00:19.420 --> 00:00:21.460 issues shaping the future of our communities. 00:00:21.719 --> 00:00:23.899 From budgets to public safety, infrastructure 00:00:23.899 --> 00:00:26.839 to elections, we'll break down what's happening 00:00:26.839 --> 00:00:29.600 in Olympia and how it impacts counties from across 00:00:29.600 --> 00:00:32.719 the Evergreen State. Stay informed, stay engaged, 00:00:32.840 --> 00:00:35.719 and join us as we amplify the voice of Washington's 00:00:35.719 --> 00:00:41.149 39 counties. Welcome back, everybody, to The 00:00:41.149 --> 00:00:43.049 County Connection, the official podcast of the 00:00:43.049 --> 00:00:45.469 Washington State Association of Counties. I'm 00:00:45.469 --> 00:00:47.109 Paul Jewell, the government relations director 00:00:47.109 --> 00:00:49.890 for WASAC and host of The County Connection podcast. 00:00:50.070 --> 00:00:52.829 We've been gone for a couple of weeks. The legislative 00:00:52.829 --> 00:00:55.049 session has been over, and we're transitioning 00:00:55.049 --> 00:00:58.549 now into what we call our interim period, which 00:00:58.549 --> 00:01:00.490 is between legislative sessions. And since this 00:01:00.490 --> 00:01:03.810 is the first year for our podcast, All we have 00:01:03.810 --> 00:01:06.230 done so far has been legislative session material. 00:01:06.989 --> 00:01:09.549 But today I have a new guest, kind of a special 00:01:09.549 --> 00:01:13.609 guest, who is a little bit unexpected in the 00:01:13.609 --> 00:01:15.670 studio that I'm going to have a nice chat with. 00:01:15.969 --> 00:01:17.989 Gavin, why don't you introduce yourself? Yes. 00:01:18.010 --> 00:01:20.469 Hello, everyone. My name is Gavin Cruz. I'm a 00:01:20.469 --> 00:01:23.769 senior at Olympia High School, and I'm very interested 00:01:23.769 --> 00:01:25.670 in government and want to talk about this with 00:01:25.670 --> 00:01:27.609 the man right here. Well, great. Thanks for coming 00:01:27.609 --> 00:01:30.709 today, Gavin. It's great to have you here. Are 00:01:30.709 --> 00:01:32.969 you a fan of the podcast? How'd you hear about 00:01:32.969 --> 00:01:35.829 the County Connection? My history teacher. Your 00:01:35.829 --> 00:01:38.049 history teacher. Mr. Schaefer. Really? Yeah. 00:01:38.459 --> 00:01:42.439 And is your history teacher a fan, or how did 00:01:42.439 --> 00:01:44.019 he find out about it? I think he found out from 00:01:44.019 --> 00:01:45.900 one of your co -workers. I think Tanya has a 00:01:45.900 --> 00:01:48.500 daughter. Oh, okay. At Olympia High School, and 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:51.239 I guess the best person to relate anything government 00:01:51.239 --> 00:01:53.760 to is the government teacher. Okay, well, it's 00:01:53.760 --> 00:01:56.700 good to know that family members of our staff 00:01:56.700 --> 00:01:59.540 listen to our podcast. Yeah. And how many episodes 00:01:59.540 --> 00:02:02.400 have you listened to? I probably... Two at most. 00:02:03.780 --> 00:02:06.459 Two at most. So you're one of our biggest fans. 00:02:06.700 --> 00:02:08.460 Yeah. That makes you one of our biggest fans, 00:02:08.500 --> 00:02:11.960 Gavin. Yes, biggest contributor. Awesome. Well, 00:02:12.139 --> 00:02:14.340 so you're a senior at Ole High. Congratulations. 00:02:14.340 --> 00:02:17.479 Thank you. Looking forward to, well, geez, it's 00:02:17.479 --> 00:02:20.199 what? June 3rd. You must be getting out soon. 00:02:20.360 --> 00:02:23.620 Yes. Actually, we graduate next Monday. Next 00:02:23.620 --> 00:02:26.060 Monday. Congratulations. Thank you. Is graduation 00:02:26.060 --> 00:02:28.199 actually on a Monday night? It is on a Monday 00:02:28.199 --> 00:02:29.819 night. Oh, wow. That's kind of a weird night 00:02:29.819 --> 00:02:32.599 to be graduating. You know, if I were you, I 00:02:32.599 --> 00:02:34.719 would take it. Yeah. Take the graduation. And 00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:37.120 it's earlier than last year. Nice. So that's 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:39.680 good. Nice. Well, congratulations. So once you 00:02:39.680 --> 00:02:42.139 graduate, you're done. What do you got planned 00:02:42.139 --> 00:02:44.210 for the summer? Summer, we're probably going 00:02:44.210 --> 00:02:46.449 on a summer vacation with my family to Europe. 00:02:46.569 --> 00:02:48.750 Oh, nice. Yeah. Whereabouts in Europe are you 00:02:48.750 --> 00:02:51.090 going to go? Switzerland, Alps, and then Northern 00:02:51.090 --> 00:02:53.389 Italy. Have you been to Europe before? I've been 00:02:53.389 --> 00:02:55.550 before. Oh, wow. That's great. Well, that'll 00:02:55.550 --> 00:02:57.150 be a really good time. Oh, yeah, definitely. 00:02:57.250 --> 00:02:58.969 And the weather looks pretty good there as well. 00:02:59.129 --> 00:03:01.629 Well, yeah. I mean, it doesn't matter if the 00:03:01.629 --> 00:03:03.430 weather is good or not in the Swiss Alps, right? 00:03:03.629 --> 00:03:05.789 Yeah. I mean, if someone told me the weather 00:03:05.789 --> 00:03:07.650 was going to be bad, would you like to go? I 00:03:07.650 --> 00:03:09.509 would say, yes, please. Yeah, it's a new thing. 00:03:09.590 --> 00:03:12.069 But I'm afraid that we're going to overly compare. 00:03:12.169 --> 00:03:14.629 to the mountains here, like rainier. That's the 00:03:14.629 --> 00:03:16.830 thing about living in the mountain state. Well, 00:03:16.990 --> 00:03:18.810 we're certainly blessed here and we're certainly 00:03:18.810 --> 00:03:21.490 spoiled, but I think you're probably still going 00:03:21.490 --> 00:03:24.729 to really like it there. Yeah. So you've been 00:03:24.729 --> 00:03:26.289 to Europe before. What parts of Europe have you 00:03:26.289 --> 00:03:29.569 been to? I've been to Central Europe. So last 00:03:29.569 --> 00:03:33.289 year I've got a chance to visit, you know, Budapest 00:03:33.289 --> 00:03:37.629 and, you know. Czech Republic as well. I've got 00:03:37.629 --> 00:03:39.710 a chance to experience Western Europe, such as 00:03:39.710 --> 00:03:44.110 France, Spain, Portugal, UK. Well, great. So 00:03:44.110 --> 00:03:45.770 you've been to Europe a few times. I've been 00:03:45.770 --> 00:03:47.530 to Europe a few times. What about Asia? Asia, 00:03:47.590 --> 00:03:50.150 yes. This spring break, I just recently went 00:03:50.150 --> 00:03:52.569 to Japan and Korea. So that was spring break. 00:03:52.789 --> 00:03:55.030 Yeah. You know, when I was a kid in high school, 00:03:55.129 --> 00:03:58.310 spring break was not an Asian trip on vacation. 00:03:58.409 --> 00:04:01.349 So obviously things are a little different these 00:04:01.349 --> 00:04:04.129 days than they used to be. Well, you're pretty 00:04:04.129 --> 00:04:07.400 well -traveled. Career plans? Now that you're 00:04:07.400 --> 00:04:08.780 getting out of high school, it's time to get 00:04:08.780 --> 00:04:10.280 a job and make your way in the world, Gavin, 00:04:10.419 --> 00:04:12.240 and get out of your parents' house and pay your 00:04:12.240 --> 00:04:17.060 own way. What's up with that? Yes. So as far 00:04:17.060 --> 00:04:19.540 as career plans, I want to pursue an area in 00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:23.920 government. And government is a very broad career. 00:04:24.459 --> 00:04:27.290 Sure. many aspects of government that you can 00:04:27.290 --> 00:04:30.149 be affiliated with. But I specifically want to 00:04:30.149 --> 00:04:33.529 go towards policymaking because by working with 00:04:33.529 --> 00:04:35.250 some of the extracurriculars I've done, such 00:04:35.250 --> 00:04:38.730 as, you know, Youth in Government and LIAC, I'm 00:04:38.730 --> 00:04:42.209 curious in trying to find a way to use my voice 00:04:42.209 --> 00:04:44.790 for the greater good. So we have a rule here 00:04:44.790 --> 00:04:47.600 that you just broke. on the County Connection 00:04:47.600 --> 00:04:49.439 podcast. You mentioned a couple of different 00:04:49.439 --> 00:04:52.060 programs. One was youth and government, but then 00:04:52.060 --> 00:04:54.800 you also said something, was it YIAC or LIAC? 00:04:54.959 --> 00:04:57.459 LIAC. LIAC, and I'm assuming that's an acronym. 00:04:57.920 --> 00:05:01.779 It is an acronym. Okay, so we can only use acronyms 00:05:01.779 --> 00:05:04.620 on this podcast. Once we've told people what 00:05:04.620 --> 00:05:07.620 they are. So yeah, we've got to, we've got to 00:05:07.620 --> 00:05:09.939 help you correct that rule. What does LIAC mean? 00:05:10.120 --> 00:05:13.740 Yes. LIAC is the Legislative Youth Advisory Council 00:05:13.740 --> 00:05:16.360 headed by the office of the Lieutenant Governor, 00:05:16.540 --> 00:05:19.959 Denny Heck. Okay. You said Legislative Youth 00:05:19.959 --> 00:05:22.699 Advisory Council. That's correct. Okay. I'm spelling 00:05:22.699 --> 00:05:24.420 it wrong, but that's okay. I'm just getting in 00:05:24.420 --> 00:05:26.959 my notes here. So Lieutenant Governor Heck actually 00:05:26.959 --> 00:05:29.329 leads that. That is correct. Have you met the 00:05:29.329 --> 00:05:31.470 lieutenant governor? I've met him multiple times. 00:05:31.550 --> 00:05:34.730 Yeah, he's a great guy. Yeah, good guy. So what 00:05:34.730 --> 00:05:38.990 spurred your interest in government in general, 00:05:39.029 --> 00:05:42.970 do you think? That's a funny fact because I used 00:05:42.970 --> 00:05:45.980 to like, I love watching the news. That claim 00:05:45.980 --> 00:05:48.199 right there can be like in this day of age, like 00:05:48.199 --> 00:05:51.139 really? But when I was in fourth grade, Lester 00:05:51.139 --> 00:05:54.480 Holt, who was the newscaster on NBC News. Sure, 00:05:54.500 --> 00:05:57.259 I remember. Yeah. He just recently stepped down 00:05:57.259 --> 00:06:00.300 of his position. But there's just something about 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:05.000 like getting exposed to like what is. outside 00:06:05.000 --> 00:06:07.660 the bubble as a young person and hearing whether 00:06:07.660 --> 00:06:14.319 it's natural disasters or political news or international 00:06:14.319 --> 00:06:17.019 affairs. I think it just spawned my curiosity 00:06:17.019 --> 00:06:20.160 about just by hearing these things, what can 00:06:20.160 --> 00:06:24.000 I do to fix it? And it may sound like a cliche 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:26.459 statement, which in some parts of the aspect, 00:06:26.560 --> 00:06:29.879 it is a cliche statement. But I think that curiosity 00:06:29.879 --> 00:06:32.819 spawned a whole realm of like, okay, you know, 00:06:33.739 --> 00:06:37.379 learning the steps and process about how policy 00:06:37.379 --> 00:06:39.759 is made at the table. Well, I think most kids 00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:41.699 your age, when they think about fixing it, they're 00:06:41.699 --> 00:06:43.620 thinking about how do they fix their Xbox or 00:06:43.620 --> 00:06:46.300 their Insta profile. You're trying to fix public 00:06:46.300 --> 00:06:49.240 policy. Well, that is unusual, I would have to 00:06:49.240 --> 00:06:52.579 say. Do you find that there's a lot of other 00:06:52.579 --> 00:06:55.500 kids your age with similar interests? If you 00:06:55.500 --> 00:07:00.040 go on LinkedIn, yes. All right, how many kids 00:07:00.040 --> 00:07:04.920 your age are on LinkedIn? I have almost 500 connections 00:07:04.920 --> 00:07:08.259 on LinkedIn. Of other youth similar in age to 00:07:08.259 --> 00:07:10.639 you? I mean, if you see their experiences on 00:07:10.639 --> 00:07:13.300 LinkedIn, I mean, oh my gosh. Wow. There's a 00:07:13.300 --> 00:07:16.399 lot. And I think it depends on where you grow 00:07:16.399 --> 00:07:19.000 up. If you grow up in a more urban area like 00:07:19.000 --> 00:07:21.240 in Seattle, then there'll be probably more kids 00:07:21.240 --> 00:07:23.160 that have similar interests to me. But in the 00:07:23.160 --> 00:07:25.939 suburbs, I think in my school, I felt like... 00:07:26.110 --> 00:07:28.009 I was like one of the only kids who was just 00:07:28.009 --> 00:07:29.649 interested in doing this type of stuff. Yeah, 00:07:29.649 --> 00:07:32.089 but Ole High is not a small school. No. You guys 00:07:32.089 --> 00:07:35.490 are what, triple A? We're 4A. 4A, okay. It's 00:07:35.490 --> 00:07:37.430 a little bigger than when I was a kid. I grew 00:07:37.430 --> 00:07:40.689 up right down the road from here, so I'm sure 00:07:40.689 --> 00:07:42.750 it's grown a little bit. So you're quadruple 00:07:42.750 --> 00:07:45.029 A, you're 4A. So how many kids are in your graduating 00:07:45.029 --> 00:07:50.060 class? 500? We're actually at four. 450. 450. 00:07:50.319 --> 00:07:52.500 Yeah, under 500. Yeah, I think there were 89 00:07:52.500 --> 00:07:55.139 in my graduating class. Oh, wow. Now, I didn't 00:07:55.139 --> 00:07:59.079 go to Ole High. I went to Tenino High. So that's 00:07:59.079 --> 00:08:01.839 quite a bit difference, but still. So that's 00:08:01.839 --> 00:08:03.279 a lot bigger school. I'm sure there are other 00:08:03.279 --> 00:08:06.459 kids there that have similar interests. Do you 00:08:06.459 --> 00:08:08.100 guys have a political club at school or anything? 00:08:08.540 --> 00:08:11.730 The closest, well. thing to a quote -unquote 00:08:11.730 --> 00:08:14.189 political club is the activism club so we have 00:08:14.189 --> 00:08:16.529 a lot of um you know feminist movements at our 00:08:16.529 --> 00:08:19.069 school that do a lot of advocacy and activism 00:08:19.069 --> 00:08:21.470 that's That's the closing to a political club 00:08:21.470 --> 00:08:24.290 in terms of like structuralized government or 00:08:24.290 --> 00:08:26.670 like the typical government nerds club of like 00:08:26.670 --> 00:08:29.110 speech and debate model UN. We don't have that 00:08:29.110 --> 00:08:31.129 at Olympia high school anymore. Okay. Well, this 00:08:31.129 --> 00:08:33.789 is interesting to me. So you've been involved 00:08:33.789 --> 00:08:35.889 in some of these other things, the LIAC, the 00:08:35.889 --> 00:08:38.370 legislative youth advisory council council. Thank 00:08:38.370 --> 00:08:41.909 you. And then youth and government. And you're 00:08:41.909 --> 00:08:43.549 interested in pursuing a career in government. 00:08:44.110 --> 00:08:46.429 Let me ask you this question because this is 00:08:46.429 --> 00:08:47.929 interesting. This is something that oftentimes 00:08:47.929 --> 00:08:51.490 stumps. people. What do you know about county 00:08:51.490 --> 00:08:53.590 government? You know, this is a county government 00:08:53.590 --> 00:08:56.590 podcast. Have you ever met any of your county 00:08:56.590 --> 00:08:58.309 government officials? Yes, I've met a couple, 00:08:58.429 --> 00:09:01.850 actually. Got the chance to talk to Commissioner 00:09:01.850 --> 00:09:05.769 Mejia. And one of my first conversations with 00:09:05.769 --> 00:09:08.009 a government official was a county commissioner. 00:09:08.230 --> 00:09:11.070 It was John Hutchings from Thurston County. Former 00:09:11.070 --> 00:09:14.429 sheriff or police chief, John Hutchings, and 00:09:14.429 --> 00:09:16.629 former county commissioner, John Hutchings. Yes. 00:09:16.690 --> 00:09:18.970 And he now, I think, works up at the legislature. 00:09:18.990 --> 00:09:21.669 Yes. Every time I see him on the Hill, it's like 00:09:21.669 --> 00:09:23.950 a... reunion because he first interviewed me 00:09:23.950 --> 00:09:26.169 in sixth grade. Oh, really? Yeah. What did he 00:09:26.169 --> 00:09:29.509 interview you for? What is civility? Oh, interesting. 00:09:29.649 --> 00:09:31.610 So that was part of his episode series with the 00:09:31.610 --> 00:09:33.850 county government. And that was my first like 00:09:33.850 --> 00:09:36.370 real exposure to meeting a quote unquote government 00:09:36.370 --> 00:09:38.230 official or politician or whatever you think 00:09:38.230 --> 00:09:42.710 that is. Okay. So you know a little bit about 00:09:42.710 --> 00:09:44.950 county government. You've met some county commissioners. 00:09:44.950 --> 00:09:46.909 Do you know what county governments do? Well, 00:09:46.909 --> 00:09:49.850 I have a general idea. I mean, you know, when 00:09:49.850 --> 00:09:52.279 you think county, you think a larger area that 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:55.320 is governed. So Thurston County is, you know, 00:09:55.320 --> 00:09:57.600 it's a larger area compared to like the city 00:09:57.600 --> 00:10:02.659 of Olympia or Yelm or Tumwater or Lacey. And 00:10:02.659 --> 00:10:04.460 I think when it comes to county governments, 00:10:04.740 --> 00:10:06.860 there's a couple of services that they offer. 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:09.679 So I know I've met some people that work for 00:10:09.679 --> 00:10:11.340 the county health department when it comes to 00:10:11.340 --> 00:10:14.419 substance abuse. I've also, I'm not sure this 00:10:14.419 --> 00:10:15.980 is a county government because I know in King 00:10:15.980 --> 00:10:18.799 County. their transit systems own and operated 00:10:18.799 --> 00:10:22.159 by the county. Yeah, it's actually the only one, 00:10:22.220 --> 00:10:24.240 I believe. The only one. Yeah, in Washington 00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:25.899 where the transit system is actually owned and 00:10:25.899 --> 00:10:27.259 operated by the county. By the county, yeah. 00:10:27.299 --> 00:10:29.360 So I know some counties have the ability to do 00:10:29.360 --> 00:10:33.419 that. Counties can also have their own jail. 00:10:33.960 --> 00:10:35.700 That's true. So the city of Olympia doesn't have 00:10:35.700 --> 00:10:40.659 a city jail. They just refer them to the county. 00:10:40.940 --> 00:10:42.919 That's right, that's right. So there's some aspects 00:10:42.919 --> 00:10:44.779 and services of what the county does, but in 00:10:44.779 --> 00:10:47.279 terms of the structure, I'm still, Want to discover 00:10:47.279 --> 00:10:50.740 that. Okay. Well, what do you think are the issues 00:10:50.740 --> 00:10:54.320 that are important to today's youth that county 00:10:54.320 --> 00:10:57.919 governments can actually influence? Yes. So I 00:10:57.919 --> 00:10:59.980 think county government can definitely influence 00:10:59.980 --> 00:11:03.059 the way social services are handed out to the 00:11:03.059 --> 00:11:05.940 youth. One of the big subjects I'm more passionate 00:11:05.940 --> 00:11:08.799 about is mental health and how do we provide 00:11:08.799 --> 00:11:12.779 those services to students? Typically, it's all 00:11:12.779 --> 00:11:15.100 honed in at the district level, but yet the county 00:11:15.100 --> 00:11:17.779 government can be supportive in whether it's 00:11:17.779 --> 00:11:21.460 creating a PSA regarding addiction and how to 00:11:21.460 --> 00:11:25.500 combat that. Maybe it's like the, you know, the 00:11:25.500 --> 00:11:27.960 services of like try to find a crisis center. 00:11:28.139 --> 00:11:30.159 How do you think your fellow students, how do 00:11:30.159 --> 00:11:34.460 they view mental health as an issue just in general? 00:11:34.559 --> 00:11:37.779 And how do they, how do you think they, is there 00:11:37.779 --> 00:11:41.039 a real big stigma associated with mental illness? 00:11:41.639 --> 00:11:45.159 Or is it treated more like, you know, any other 00:11:45.159 --> 00:11:48.720 sort of, you know, physical or biological issue 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:50.519 that just needs to be dealt with, do you think, 00:11:50.580 --> 00:11:53.360 amongst today's young people? i think in this 00:11:53.360 --> 00:11:56.639 day of age it's at least more acceptable as to 00:11:56.639 --> 00:11:58.980 like you know talking to people with mental illnesses 00:11:58.980 --> 00:12:02.120 or mental health like in the 60s when lobotomies 00:12:02.120 --> 00:12:05.259 were still around and but i think there's still 00:12:05.259 --> 00:12:09.279 stigma around it especially by the type of people 00:12:09.279 --> 00:12:11.919 that are more susceptible or like the stereotype 00:12:11.919 --> 00:12:14.679 that if you are facing depression or you have 00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:17.860 a mental disorder that you are X, Y, and Z, which 00:12:17.860 --> 00:12:20.240 really this can happen to anyone. You don't need 00:12:20.240 --> 00:12:22.820 to fit those labels. So you think that even today 00:12:22.820 --> 00:12:25.059 with all the awareness that's been going around 00:12:25.059 --> 00:12:27.139 and the discussion that's been happening, and 00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:30.259 we do this a lot at the county level, you kind 00:12:30.259 --> 00:12:32.639 of mentioned it through our public health departments 00:12:32.639 --> 00:12:34.919 and through our behavioral health departments 00:12:34.919 --> 00:12:36.480 and providers, you think there's still a lot 00:12:36.480 --> 00:12:38.360 of stigma? amongst today's youth around mental 00:12:38.360 --> 00:12:40.519 illness? I think so. Oh, yeah, definitely. So 00:12:40.519 --> 00:12:43.340 does that mean that people... Does that prevent, 00:12:43.559 --> 00:12:46.039 you think, some of your classmates maybe from 00:12:46.039 --> 00:12:48.960 seeking treatment or being open about some of 00:12:48.960 --> 00:12:51.080 their challenges or the way they may be feeling? 00:12:51.299 --> 00:12:54.549 I think... Yes, but also as a no, it's a mix 00:12:54.549 --> 00:12:57.269 of both because in some ways that especially 00:12:57.269 --> 00:12:59.389 on social media, like the way some perceives 00:12:59.389 --> 00:13:02.049 mental health or based on like, you know, the 00:13:02.049 --> 00:13:05.210 expectations versus reality, then it can discourage 00:13:05.210 --> 00:13:07.009 people from getting the actual help they need. 00:13:07.129 --> 00:13:09.350 But there's also the same argument that mental 00:13:09.350 --> 00:13:12.149 health is also at the home where maybe the lack 00:13:12.149 --> 00:13:14.830 of, you know, crisis training or noticing the 00:13:14.830 --> 00:13:17.590 suicide warning signs for especially parents 00:13:17.590 --> 00:13:20.669 and relatives can lead someone to feel like they're 00:13:20.669 --> 00:13:23.580 not being heard. at all. So yes, there's some 00:13:23.580 --> 00:13:25.700 county responsibility, but also I think there's 00:13:25.700 --> 00:13:28.240 also responsibilities in different aspects that 00:13:28.240 --> 00:13:31.240 are beyond what the county can do. Yeah. Well, 00:13:31.279 --> 00:13:32.759 what other things do you think are important 00:13:32.759 --> 00:13:36.679 from a policy perspective to today's young people, 00:13:36.740 --> 00:13:39.700 your classmates, for instance, that county governments 00:13:39.700 --> 00:13:44.370 can have an impact on? Yes, I think and I know 00:13:44.370 --> 00:13:46.590 we did this in government class about what are 00:13:46.590 --> 00:13:48.830 the things government can provide for you. So 00:13:48.830 --> 00:13:52.149 I know most of, you know, educational funding 00:13:52.149 --> 00:13:55.129 comes from bonds. And typically that's seen at 00:13:55.129 --> 00:13:56.950 a district level, but the county can definitely. 00:13:57.720 --> 00:14:00.259 do that by the accessibility of voting, which 00:14:00.259 --> 00:14:01.820 I'm very glad we have a mail -by -vote system 00:14:01.820 --> 00:14:04.039 where people can be better informed about an 00:14:04.039 --> 00:14:06.940 issue. But I think when it comes to even passing 00:14:06.940 --> 00:14:09.399 those bonds, which needs a two -thirds threshold 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:13.799 to even pass, maybe doing more PSAs regarding 00:14:13.799 --> 00:14:17.059 elections because we often participate in the 00:14:17.059 --> 00:14:18.740 largest elections that pertain to the federal 00:14:18.740 --> 00:14:20.519 government. But when it comes to the smaller 00:14:20.519 --> 00:14:24.539 governments, Turnout is not even that good. You 00:14:24.539 --> 00:14:26.559 know, counties do run the elections. They do. 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:29.200 Did you know that? Yes. Mary Hall. Very good. 00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:32.120 Yeah. Of course, we don't write the rules around 00:14:32.120 --> 00:14:34.379 how the elections get run and what thresholds. 00:14:34.419 --> 00:14:36.080 That's really up to the legislature. You probably 00:14:36.080 --> 00:14:38.559 knew that, too. You didn't tell us how old you 00:14:38.559 --> 00:14:40.720 are. Are you over 18 years old? Yes, I'm an eligible 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:42.639 voter. I voted this past election. That's what 00:14:42.639 --> 00:14:44.460 I was going to ask. Were you eligible to vote 00:14:44.460 --> 00:14:46.659 in November? Yes, I am. Okay. Was that the first 00:14:46.659 --> 00:14:48.419 time? That was the first ballot. How did that 00:14:48.419 --> 00:14:53.250 feel? Felt amazing. We did the process in, you 00:14:53.250 --> 00:14:55.129 know, as I mentioned, I'm part of the government 00:14:55.129 --> 00:14:57.970 where we mock the government or mock the legislature. 00:14:58.029 --> 00:15:01.090 And by mock, you mean? Not by making fun of. 00:15:02.029 --> 00:15:06.009 I had to clarify. Not in that aspect. Because, 00:15:06.009 --> 00:15:08.029 you know, I'm hearing your mother say, don't 00:15:08.029 --> 00:15:12.120 you mock me, young man. No. No. We think that 00:15:12.120 --> 00:15:14.639 mock government is like imitate in a way. Like 00:15:14.639 --> 00:15:17.259 a mocktail instead of a cocktail. Yes. Right. 00:15:17.419 --> 00:15:19.799 Yeah. Why is it that you know that reference 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:26.000 when I bring it up? Oh. So you guys have classes 00:15:26.000 --> 00:15:29.779 or opportunities to kind of pretend. Yes. Right. 00:15:29.860 --> 00:15:32.519 Where you're acting like the government. Exactly. 00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:36.899 Okay. Okay. And fun fact, I was the youth lieutenant 00:15:36.899 --> 00:15:39.080 governor for that. youth and government program 00:15:39.080 --> 00:15:41.500 at the Capitol. Did that feel, did it feel like 00:15:41.500 --> 00:15:44.059 you had all the power? The gavel does definitely 00:15:44.059 --> 00:15:46.580 help you out with the power. Once you hold the 00:15:46.580 --> 00:15:48.879 gavel, it's like, oh my gosh. It's like a magic 00:15:48.879 --> 00:15:50.919 stick, right? Yeah. You almost feel like it's 00:15:50.919 --> 00:15:52.980 Thor's hammer. And like when you're like about 00:15:52.980 --> 00:15:55.500 to pound it on the table, it's just like, I think 00:15:55.500 --> 00:15:59.720 that's the best feeling you can get. Oh, be careful. 00:15:59.840 --> 00:16:03.379 Be careful with that gavel. Well, so you're old 00:16:03.379 --> 00:16:06.279 enough to vote. You voted in November. You know, 00:16:06.620 --> 00:16:09.399 Counties, especially with local elections, they 00:16:09.399 --> 00:16:14.960 produce a voter's pamphlet many times. Do you 00:16:14.960 --> 00:16:16.360 think counties do a good enough job reaching 00:16:16.360 --> 00:16:18.580 out to young people who are eligible to vote 00:16:18.580 --> 00:16:21.610 to inform them about the issues? I think there 00:16:21.610 --> 00:16:23.870 have been attempts, and I know at the Youth and 00:16:23.870 --> 00:16:25.629 Government Conference at the Capitol that I have 00:16:25.629 --> 00:16:28.769 done, we actually used the county voting system 00:16:28.769 --> 00:16:33.350 to help run our own mock elections for next year's 00:16:33.350 --> 00:16:35.409 major officers, such as the governor, lieutenant 00:16:35.409 --> 00:16:39.990 governor, all those positions. So I guess for 00:16:39.990 --> 00:16:42.929 a lot of people, just physically going there 00:16:42.929 --> 00:16:45.289 and voting at the polling booth can probably 00:16:45.289 --> 00:16:47.769 say, hey, this is a cool idea. When can I sign 00:16:47.769 --> 00:16:51.120 up? And I think like in terms of advertisement, 00:16:51.460 --> 00:16:54.100 I can always say there needs to be more done, 00:16:54.279 --> 00:16:56.700 especially maybe interviewing some people that 00:16:56.700 --> 00:16:58.620 are young voters and why it's important to vote, 00:16:58.700 --> 00:17:01.200 regardless of the political bias or polarization 00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:03.840 we've seen in the country. But I think at the 00:17:03.840 --> 00:17:05.599 same time, I feel like Washington state has done 00:17:05.599 --> 00:17:08.279 an absolutely amazing job in trying to get voter 00:17:08.279 --> 00:17:10.220 accessibility when it comes to mail -in ballots 00:17:10.220 --> 00:17:12.910 as opposed to, you know. stuff I've seen across 00:17:12.910 --> 00:17:14.789 the country where they wait in lines to vote. 00:17:14.950 --> 00:17:18.089 You know, when I was your age and I voted for 00:17:18.089 --> 00:17:20.109 the first time, we still had polling stations 00:17:20.109 --> 00:17:22.650 where we would go. And oftentimes they were at 00:17:22.650 --> 00:17:25.349 the school, like at the gym or somewhere else 00:17:25.349 --> 00:17:27.769 on a community building where you would actually 00:17:27.769 --> 00:17:30.990 go and you would sign in and they would check 00:17:30.990 --> 00:17:33.069 off the fact that you were there and they'd give 00:17:33.069 --> 00:17:34.950 you a ballot and you'd go to your booth and you 00:17:34.950 --> 00:17:36.750 would vote and you'd come out and turn it in 00:17:36.750 --> 00:17:38.609 and rip off your little stub and get your sticker 00:17:38.609 --> 00:17:41.289 that said, I voted and off you go. I actually 00:17:41.289 --> 00:17:43.200 kind kind of miss that a little bit from a nostalgic 00:17:43.200 --> 00:17:45.559 point of view. And I even brought my kids a couple 00:17:45.559 --> 00:17:47.559 of times when they were really little, just so 00:17:47.559 --> 00:17:49.119 that they could kind of see what was going on 00:17:49.119 --> 00:17:52.680 and was made kind of an event. Do you think voting, 00:17:53.319 --> 00:17:56.420 do you think the fact that, at least from a young 00:17:56.420 --> 00:17:58.460 person's point of view, I mean, I understand 00:17:58.460 --> 00:18:00.599 the accessibility and the ease of voting, but 00:18:00.599 --> 00:18:02.539 do you think that people take it more for granted 00:18:02.539 --> 00:18:05.960 when it's easier to do than if it is kind of 00:18:05.960 --> 00:18:09.799 that, you know, life event that you have to actually... 00:18:10.570 --> 00:18:13.569 deliberately go and make a point to actually 00:18:13.569 --> 00:18:15.609 accomplish. That's actually a good point you 00:18:15.609 --> 00:18:19.710 mentioned because where I used to live in South 00:18:19.710 --> 00:18:22.529 Carolina, that's how they did voting. And I think 00:18:22.529 --> 00:18:25.049 even... When you say that's how they did voting, 00:18:25.089 --> 00:18:26.369 how did they do it? Where you had to go to the 00:18:26.369 --> 00:18:27.430 polling booth? In person. It's an in -person 00:18:27.430 --> 00:18:30.619 polling booth. And I think even... to like voting 00:18:30.619 --> 00:18:33.460 like that type of style, like this past May at 00:18:33.460 --> 00:18:35.299 the youth and government conference, like it 00:18:35.299 --> 00:18:37.319 didn't feel like a sense of like, okay, I actually 00:18:37.319 --> 00:18:39.700 vote with my passion, with my conscience. And 00:18:39.700 --> 00:18:41.799 by putting this ballot in, I'm participating 00:18:41.799 --> 00:18:45.039 in, you know, the electoral process. And for 00:18:45.039 --> 00:18:47.200 some ways, you know, that can incentivize people 00:18:47.200 --> 00:18:48.799 to go vote. And I do agree with your statement 00:18:48.799 --> 00:18:51.039 that like, you know, although we have so much 00:18:51.039 --> 00:18:52.700 accessibility to voting, which is a good thing, 00:18:52.740 --> 00:18:54.579 sometimes, you know, bringing that nostalgia 00:18:54.579 --> 00:18:57.579 or feeling. can make you feel more inclined that 00:18:57.579 --> 00:18:59.819 your voice does matter and I'm doing something 00:18:59.819 --> 00:19:02.740 to participate in the democracy we have here. 00:19:02.880 --> 00:19:05.140 Yeah. So you don't think that it necessarily 00:19:05.140 --> 00:19:09.599 negatively affects people's impression or their, 00:19:09.700 --> 00:19:13.579 you don't think it really makes them think of, 00:19:13.619 --> 00:19:16.670 how do I put this? They're not. it's not something 00:19:16.670 --> 00:19:18.130 that they're just taking more for granted. You 00:19:18.130 --> 00:19:19.990 think they still really appreciate the opportunity 00:19:19.990 --> 00:19:22.390 to take part in that process? I think so as well. 00:19:22.470 --> 00:19:25.269 Well, you know, the numbers show that turnout 00:19:25.269 --> 00:19:29.130 is better when you make it easier and it actually 00:19:29.130 --> 00:19:32.950 costs less money, which is a good thing too from, 00:19:33.049 --> 00:19:35.759 you know, just a... government efficiency standpoint. 00:19:35.900 --> 00:19:38.559 I guess I'm just old. I guess I just miss the 00:19:38.559 --> 00:19:41.839 old days and the way things used to be. And that's 00:19:41.839 --> 00:19:44.700 okay. That's okay. You know, you also mentioned 00:19:44.700 --> 00:19:47.420 something I want to hit on. You know, we've talked 00:19:47.420 --> 00:19:49.720 about elections a little bit. We've talked about 00:19:49.720 --> 00:19:52.259 mental health. And I certainly am interested 00:19:52.259 --> 00:19:56.279 in any other areas of policy that you think are 00:19:56.279 --> 00:19:59.920 important to today's youth that counties can 00:19:59.920 --> 00:20:02.200 have an impact on. But you also mentioned the 00:20:02.200 --> 00:20:05.160 impact of social media. And I know social media 00:20:05.160 --> 00:20:07.839 is a big deal. It's a big deal to everyone, but 00:20:07.839 --> 00:20:10.180 it's certainly even a bigger deal to your generation, 00:20:10.299 --> 00:20:12.440 right? We didn't have social media when I was 00:20:12.440 --> 00:20:17.059 your age. We certainly didn't have telephones 00:20:17.059 --> 00:20:19.160 like this. We carried them around in suitcases 00:20:19.160 --> 00:20:22.299 and they were this big, right? I'm sure you've 00:20:22.299 --> 00:20:24.119 seen those in museums. Yeah, I've seen them. 00:20:25.740 --> 00:20:28.380 What role do you think social media plays in 00:20:28.380 --> 00:20:32.880 shaping? the viewpoint of young people today 00:20:32.880 --> 00:20:36.279 around policy or political issues? And how do 00:20:36.279 --> 00:20:39.720 you think counties can, you know, take advantage 00:20:39.720 --> 00:20:43.619 of that or influence that or be a part of, you 00:20:43.619 --> 00:20:45.880 know, talking with or communicating with youth 00:20:45.880 --> 00:20:49.329 in social media? Yeah, I think social media is 00:20:49.329 --> 00:20:51.450 a very powerful tool because it's at the tip 00:20:51.450 --> 00:20:53.450 of your fingers. If you can record something, 00:20:53.730 --> 00:20:56.470 whether it's a political statement or maybe even 00:20:56.470 --> 00:20:59.569 creating an infographic post that can be posted 00:20:59.569 --> 00:21:02.269 elsewhere, it can definitely influence a lot 00:21:02.269 --> 00:21:06.730 of people because it's a picture, which is basically 00:21:06.730 --> 00:21:11.099 a thousand words. When I see social media for 00:21:11.099 --> 00:21:13.819 our generation, I definitely see in a lot of 00:21:13.819 --> 00:21:16.220 campaigning because I got a chance to work on 00:21:16.220 --> 00:21:18.599 a campaign trail for a couple candidates in the 00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:22.019 area. So you actually worked on candidate campaigns? 00:21:22.339 --> 00:21:25.839 Yeah. And was this recent? Yeah, as recent as 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:29.880 2024. Okay. Do you mind if you tell us what candidates? 00:21:29.940 --> 00:21:32.559 Well, first of all, did they win? Yes, they were. 00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:36.940 Okay, because we don't want to put you at risk 00:21:36.940 --> 00:21:39.759 if you back the losing candidate. So who were 00:21:39.759 --> 00:21:42.619 these candidates? I worked for Congresswoman 00:21:42.619 --> 00:21:45.140 Shirklin's campaign. Okay. So I got a chance 00:21:45.140 --> 00:21:47.900 to work for a political director. And most of 00:21:47.900 --> 00:21:52.440 her campaigning was through grassroots, like 00:21:52.440 --> 00:21:55.359 get out the vote events. So it was like knocking 00:21:55.359 --> 00:21:57.940 on doors and doing the traditional canvassing 00:21:57.940 --> 00:22:00.579 and all that stuff. But I've met people that 00:22:00.579 --> 00:22:02.740 worked on campaigns. that did the digital side 00:22:02.740 --> 00:22:05.160 of it. And, you know, they were probably taking 00:22:05.160 --> 00:22:08.099 photos or maybe recording statements or maybe 00:22:08.099 --> 00:22:10.740 getting in and do like a TikTok trend that was 00:22:10.740 --> 00:22:13.119 deemed to be cool and hopefully pulling voters. 00:22:13.559 --> 00:22:15.799 And even in the 2024 presidential elections, 00:22:15.940 --> 00:22:18.420 I noticed like the usage of TikTok and, you know, 00:22:18.460 --> 00:22:21.500 Instagram Reels really did influence like who 00:22:21.500 --> 00:22:23.859 Gen Z really want to vote for just based on their 00:22:23.859 --> 00:22:26.500 likeness and whether or not they can appeal to 00:22:26.500 --> 00:22:29.599 them based on. And for some people. It can just 00:22:29.599 --> 00:22:31.900 be that one TikTok or that short clip that can 00:22:31.900 --> 00:22:33.700 definitely change their perception of how they 00:22:33.700 --> 00:22:39.079 vote as a person. But let me push back on you 00:22:39.079 --> 00:22:43.259 just a little bit. So one TikTok, one social 00:22:43.259 --> 00:22:47.900 media post, suddenly that is the magic that shapes 00:22:47.900 --> 00:22:51.319 a person's entire opinion. Do you think that's 00:22:51.319 --> 00:22:55.619 right, number one? And number two, don't people 00:22:55.619 --> 00:22:58.759 have... an obligation to go beyond that, to maybe 00:22:58.759 --> 00:23:03.319 see at least 10 posts, you know, maybe five videos 00:23:03.319 --> 00:23:06.240 from different, you know, TikTokers or people 00:23:06.240 --> 00:23:08.380 that come from different walks of life just to 00:23:08.380 --> 00:23:12.900 get a better rounded view. And so much of the 00:23:12.900 --> 00:23:15.279 information online today, especially in social 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:20.420 media, is just bull, right? It's just made up. 00:23:20.420 --> 00:23:24.160 It's AI. It's, you know, it's just intentionally 00:23:25.630 --> 00:23:29.950 wrong or misleading or even worse right it's 00:23:29.950 --> 00:23:32.930 from a bad actor who's trying to achieve a whole 00:23:32.930 --> 00:23:36.390 other you know manipulative outcome and you're 00:23:36.390 --> 00:23:40.009 a pawn in that scheme right not so much for school 00:23:40.009 --> 00:23:43.069 board or you know for for county commissioner 00:23:43.069 --> 00:23:46.730 maybe or for city council but someone you know 00:23:46.730 --> 00:23:50.289 a congressional race perhaps you know a presidential 00:23:50.289 --> 00:23:53.410 race Absolutely. Right. I mean, there's been 00:23:53.410 --> 00:23:56.269 wide reporting about that. Do you think youth 00:23:56.269 --> 00:23:59.069 take that seriously today? Do you think they 00:23:59.069 --> 00:24:02.410 understand the potential that social media has 00:24:02.410 --> 00:24:06.069 to actually, you know, use them in that way and 00:24:06.069 --> 00:24:09.150 to manipulate their points of view? I think, 00:24:09.150 --> 00:24:11.230 you know, social media, as you mentioned, can 00:24:11.230 --> 00:24:15.130 be easily reconfigured in them, whether it's 00:24:15.130 --> 00:24:17.309 like posting an infographic or posting something 00:24:17.309 --> 00:24:20.599 that. isn't given the full context of what it 00:24:20.599 --> 00:24:23.440 of what the true intentions of that post is and 00:24:23.440 --> 00:24:26.720 you're right that um i do agree that like you 00:24:26.720 --> 00:24:28.700 know with social media like easily influencing 00:24:28.700 --> 00:24:31.500 for some people it's in one ear out the other 00:24:31.500 --> 00:24:34.160 and then they want to think critically but at 00:24:34.160 --> 00:24:36.880 the same time many people are very susceptible 00:24:36.880 --> 00:24:40.900 into falling into like these um holes where of 00:24:40.900 --> 00:24:43.940 misinformation and yet it can definitely damage 00:24:43.940 --> 00:24:46.240 the way that our country works. And especially 00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:47.759 when it comes to government, it can definitely 00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:50.839 influence the idea of, you know, anti -government 00:24:50.839 --> 00:24:53.180 rhetoric or extremist rhetoric to the point that, 00:24:53.220 --> 00:24:55.859 like, is there even a sense of trust within their 00:24:55.859 --> 00:24:58.779 own government? So although, yes, it can be beneficial 00:24:58.779 --> 00:25:00.940 into, like, influencing, you know, elections 00:25:00.940 --> 00:25:04.359 and the way we elect our people, at the same 00:25:04.359 --> 00:25:06.549 time, it can be... It's a double -edged sword. 00:25:06.710 --> 00:25:08.890 It can definitely harm people. Well, I definitely 00:25:08.890 --> 00:25:11.569 get a lot of news, right, from social media and 00:25:11.569 --> 00:25:13.630 from online. I mean, I carry this thing around. 00:25:13.950 --> 00:25:16.230 It's like if this isn't in my pocket, and for 00:25:16.230 --> 00:25:18.789 people who are listening to this and can't see 00:25:18.789 --> 00:25:21.009 it, I'm holding my phone, right? Not only am 00:25:21.009 --> 00:25:22.950 I holding my phone, I'm talking into a microphone, 00:25:23.009 --> 00:25:25.529 and there's a laptop in front of me, right? I'm 00:25:25.529 --> 00:25:30.170 like wired to the world, even though I hate the 00:25:30.170 --> 00:25:32.750 fact that I am. When I go and I get in my car, 00:25:32.990 --> 00:25:35.730 you know, my phone pairs with my car, and it 00:25:35.730 --> 00:25:38.130 tells me where to go and what to do and how I'm 00:25:38.130 --> 00:25:39.930 doing as far as my driving goes and it can make 00:25:39.930 --> 00:25:43.789 phone calls and send texts and accept texts. 00:25:43.910 --> 00:25:46.569 It's crazy, right? And I get a lot of information 00:25:46.569 --> 00:25:50.309 from this as well, both news, social media and 00:25:50.309 --> 00:25:53.269 otherwise. But I also spend a lot of time just 00:25:53.269 --> 00:25:56.869 talking to people, right? How much do you guys 00:25:56.869 --> 00:26:01.720 spend on your phones today versus... talking 00:26:01.720 --> 00:26:05.240 to each other. Yeah. If I check my screen time 00:26:05.240 --> 00:26:08.240 right now, it's not healthy. It's not healthy. 00:26:08.460 --> 00:26:10.819 Well, self -awareness is the first step, right? 00:26:10.819 --> 00:26:14.119 Yeah, definitely. We've got a 12 -step program 00:26:14.119 --> 00:26:19.460 here at WASAC. We'll help you out. But I think 00:26:19.460 --> 00:26:23.319 you're right. I think government is also a social 00:26:23.319 --> 00:26:25.279 aspect as well, like meeting new people, talking 00:26:25.279 --> 00:26:28.339 to strangers. um especially during the pandemic 00:26:28.339 --> 00:26:31.559 like you know and even going after the pandemic 00:26:31.559 --> 00:26:34.000 like the first year back of school it felt you 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:35.980 know a bit awkward and i guess that's why we 00:26:35.980 --> 00:26:37.660 were glued to our phones a lot because we thought 00:26:37.660 --> 00:26:39.779 that was the only way that we could connect with 00:26:39.779 --> 00:26:42.380 people through online or through facetime but 00:26:42.380 --> 00:26:44.599 seeing those face -to -face connections can give 00:26:44.599 --> 00:26:48.960 a bit of anxiety at some point and um I think 00:26:48.960 --> 00:26:51.240 if you use your screen time appropriately, like 00:26:51.240 --> 00:26:53.079 you use it for good, whether it's for productive 00:26:53.079 --> 00:26:56.079 reasons or, you know, maybe you want to, you're 00:26:56.079 --> 00:26:58.500 curious in researching questions, by all means, 00:26:58.519 --> 00:27:00.900 like do it, but do it in a safe manner. And I 00:27:00.900 --> 00:27:03.259 think that's when it comes to like, not even 00:27:03.259 --> 00:27:06.039 screen time, but just anything that has tolerance, 00:27:06.180 --> 00:27:09.019 you just need to, you know, consume it or use 00:27:09.019 --> 00:27:10.859 it responsibly. You think the county has any 00:27:10.859 --> 00:27:13.509 role? and that at all with young people i mean 00:27:13.509 --> 00:27:15.589 they have a public health department so definitely 00:27:15.589 --> 00:27:18.509 they can put out information regarding like you 00:27:18.509 --> 00:27:21.849 know mindfulness tips and connecting that back 00:27:21.849 --> 00:27:25.109 to behavioral health um county government can 00:27:25.109 --> 00:27:27.289 also i don't think they can make any official 00:27:27.289 --> 00:27:30.750 policy that we ban you know phone usage at this 00:27:30.750 --> 00:27:33.880 time this time because We're a free state, so 00:27:33.880 --> 00:27:38.140 we have a lot of rights into that. Did your school 00:27:38.140 --> 00:27:42.200 do a phone policy around access? Yes, we did. 00:27:42.680 --> 00:27:45.180 Those have been really controversial. Yes, it 00:27:45.180 --> 00:27:47.480 wasn't as conservative as schools where they... 00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:50.299 placed them in a pouch or they lock them up into 00:27:50.299 --> 00:27:53.480 a bin. But I think it's just the enforcement 00:27:53.480 --> 00:27:56.819 can condition the students to not use their phones. 00:27:56.960 --> 00:27:59.900 And initially... Was that accepted by the student 00:27:59.900 --> 00:28:01.200 body or did people fight against that? It took 00:28:01.200 --> 00:28:04.079 a while, but then once he got through on the 00:28:04.079 --> 00:28:06.420 year, it's just like, okay, whatever. And there's 00:28:06.420 --> 00:28:08.539 still some freedom. You can use it during lunch. 00:28:08.660 --> 00:28:11.660 You can use it during passing period or in between 00:28:11.660 --> 00:28:14.460 classes. But you cannot use it in your class. 00:28:16.299 --> 00:28:19.579 For some teachers, it also comes to their discretion 00:28:19.579 --> 00:28:22.660 whether or not they want to enforce it or whether 00:28:22.660 --> 00:28:26.240 or not they say, okay, you don't use it, but 00:28:26.240 --> 00:28:28.240 I'm not going to write you up into the office. 00:28:28.640 --> 00:28:32.599 Again, it's a slippery slope for the phone policy. 00:28:32.940 --> 00:28:37.319 I think in this digital age, it's kind of hard 00:28:37.319 --> 00:28:40.240 to not coexist with it, even though it feels 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:42.500 like a weird statement because technology has 00:28:42.500 --> 00:28:46.319 been so adaptive to it. But when it comes to 00:28:46.319 --> 00:28:48.180 the phone usage at schools, I mean, you know, 00:28:48.200 --> 00:28:50.319 I think it would take a while for students to 00:28:50.319 --> 00:28:52.259 fully, like, understand. But at least for the 00:28:52.259 --> 00:28:54.880 most part, it's received generally good feedback 00:28:54.880 --> 00:28:57.359 for the phone policy. So you mentioned something 00:28:57.359 --> 00:29:01.660 else that I'm really curious about. You talked 00:29:01.660 --> 00:29:05.380 about the pandemic and how you communicated during 00:29:05.380 --> 00:29:08.519 the pandemic. And you were probably 12, right, 00:29:08.660 --> 00:29:13.559 around when the pandemic? Seventh grade. Is 12 00:29:13.559 --> 00:29:16.319 and maybe a little bit more older. 12, 13 years 00:29:16.319 --> 00:29:18.339 old? Yeah. So you remember it, though. It was 00:29:18.339 --> 00:29:23.059 seventh grade. So you had a regular school experience 00:29:23.059 --> 00:29:25.319 up until seventh grade. Yeah. And then boom, 00:29:25.460 --> 00:29:28.779 the pandemic hit. March 13. March. So you remember 00:29:28.779 --> 00:29:32.539 the day. Yeah. Okay. And how long did it last? 00:29:32.640 --> 00:29:35.319 How long were you out of school physically where 00:29:35.319 --> 00:29:38.019 you were just doing online? It was from that 00:29:38.019 --> 00:29:42.490 day in March, not until like... I think April 00:29:42.490 --> 00:29:46.930 of eighth grade year. Okay, so a full year. Full 00:29:46.930 --> 00:29:50.069 year. So the rest of seventh grade. And then 00:29:50.069 --> 00:29:51.250 part of eighth grade. And then part of eighth 00:29:51.250 --> 00:29:53.170 grade. Then you were back in class. The hybrid 00:29:53.170 --> 00:29:56.549 schedule. Okay. If you're in classes one, two, 00:29:56.569 --> 00:29:58.450 and three, you go this way. And the rest, you 00:29:58.450 --> 00:30:01.789 go offline. And it's vice versa. Okay. Yes. Yeah. 00:30:01.930 --> 00:30:04.630 Was it weird coming back? How was that transition? 00:30:05.170 --> 00:30:07.549 It was definitely weird. It's concerning, you 00:30:07.549 --> 00:30:09.109 know, we still had face masks. And it was kind 00:30:09.109 --> 00:30:11.740 of hard to say, is that you? seeing people grow 00:30:11.740 --> 00:30:14.319 out their hair or you know yeah because that's 00:30:14.319 --> 00:30:16.700 an awkward age anyways and your your body's changing 00:30:16.700 --> 00:30:18.680 a lot and you're growing some people probably 00:30:18.680 --> 00:30:21.359 grew a foot yeah it's like i haven't seen you 00:30:21.359 --> 00:30:23.720 in a while and it felt like one class reunion 00:30:23.720 --> 00:30:25.839 like oh my gosh good to see you and same with 00:30:25.839 --> 00:30:27.559 the teachers like oh my gosh good to see you 00:30:27.559 --> 00:30:30.259 as well right but i still remember eighth grade 00:30:30.259 --> 00:30:32.500 i was yesterday and as if it was you know yesterday 00:30:32.500 --> 00:30:35.579 and just seeing that like oh my like you know 00:30:35.579 --> 00:30:39.140 the people in a place felt kind of like oh my 00:30:39.140 --> 00:30:43.099 gosh i missed you and i think with that um comes 00:30:43.099 --> 00:30:46.740 the idea about the human connection that we are 00:30:46.740 --> 00:30:50.680 we've been you know evolutionized to to be connected 00:30:50.680 --> 00:30:53.059 with others and that's been in our genes ever 00:30:53.059 --> 00:30:57.039 since you know the time of man and you know you 00:30:57.039 --> 00:30:59.759 know although how awkward it was i think with 00:30:59.759 --> 00:31:01.579 those obstacles that are given to us we'll always 00:31:01.579 --> 00:31:03.960 find a way to you know, keep moving forward. 00:31:04.019 --> 00:31:06.380 What about academically, though? Do you think 00:31:06.380 --> 00:31:08.960 that was it a struggle for you when you came 00:31:08.960 --> 00:31:13.279 back? Do you think that you lost anything academically 00:31:13.279 --> 00:31:15.519 during that period of time? Do you feel like 00:31:15.519 --> 00:31:19.039 you are at a disadvantage now going into college 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:21.000 and having been through that experience and been 00:31:21.000 --> 00:31:23.259 out of class for that period of time? you know 00:31:23.259 --> 00:31:26.200 thankfully it wasn't a younger grade as i heard 00:31:26.200 --> 00:31:27.900 some people like they missed their first two 00:31:27.900 --> 00:31:30.460 years of elementary school and that can be definitely 00:31:30.460 --> 00:31:33.019 a tough learning curve and um but especially 00:31:33.019 --> 00:31:35.380 taking like math test scores like that first 00:31:35.380 --> 00:31:38.220 year back like it was like it was rusty you know 00:31:38.220 --> 00:31:40.400 you haven't trained your brain that much because 00:31:40.400 --> 00:31:43.660 there was a lot of zoom classes Um, but, um, 00:31:43.779 --> 00:31:45.779 I think within those learning gaps, there's ways 00:31:45.779 --> 00:31:48.200 to adapt. And thankfully, you know, with our 00:31:48.200 --> 00:31:50.299 teachers at our high school, they were able to 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:52.839 adapt, but also prepare us right for college. 00:31:52.940 --> 00:31:55.259 And I think not only. You think you had enough 00:31:55.259 --> 00:31:57.180 time to kind of make up. Yes. And I'm pretty 00:31:57.180 --> 00:32:00.440 sure by now many, you know, universities and 00:32:00.440 --> 00:32:02.500 higher ed probably also adapt to that learning 00:32:02.500 --> 00:32:05.140 loss as well, you know, and the best thing to 00:32:05.140 --> 00:32:07.519 do now is just to, you know, keep no teaching 00:32:07.519 --> 00:32:10.440 content to the younger. students entering school 00:32:10.440 --> 00:32:14.259 at a quicker rate. But I think since it affected 00:32:14.259 --> 00:32:16.119 a lot of people in the United States and even 00:32:16.119 --> 00:32:18.019 around the world, I feel like it's just become 00:32:18.019 --> 00:32:20.579 a new norm. Well, there's going to be a lot of 00:32:20.579 --> 00:32:22.660 online class opportunities when you're in college, 00:32:22.799 --> 00:32:26.539 for sure. There's a lot of that stuff that transitioned, 00:32:26.900 --> 00:32:32.420 hasn't gone away. And I'm sure there'll be opportunities 00:32:32.420 --> 00:32:34.640 for you to take those classes. So maybe in the 00:32:34.640 --> 00:32:37.210 long run, it was a bit of an... because you got 00:32:37.210 --> 00:32:40.160 an early exposure to it. Exactly. So we've talked 00:32:40.160 --> 00:32:41.859 about, Gamma, we've talked about a couple of 00:32:41.859 --> 00:32:44.920 things. We've talked about, we touched on mental 00:32:44.920 --> 00:32:46.680 health a little bit. We talked a little bit about 00:32:46.680 --> 00:32:49.339 public health. We talked a bit about social media 00:32:49.339 --> 00:32:53.039 and voting for young people and kind of the voting 00:32:53.039 --> 00:32:56.339 process. We talked a little bit about some effects 00:32:56.339 --> 00:32:58.920 from the pandemic. What have we missed? What 00:32:58.920 --> 00:33:03.180 else do you think is, what else is kind of the 00:33:03.180 --> 00:33:08.400 hot topic for today's youth around policy? that 00:33:08.400 --> 00:33:11.400 you think counties can have an impact on. Yes. 00:33:11.480 --> 00:33:15.019 If anything. Yeah. I think there's one more thing 00:33:15.019 --> 00:33:17.000 that I haven't talked about yet, and it kind 00:33:17.000 --> 00:33:20.940 of relates to policy and politics, is polarization 00:33:20.940 --> 00:33:25.119 and how to combat misinformation. Because in 00:33:25.119 --> 00:33:26.660 a country that - Well, we touched on that a little 00:33:26.660 --> 00:33:28.200 when we were talking about social media, right? 00:33:28.380 --> 00:33:30.500 With social media, I see that part. But even 00:33:30.500 --> 00:33:34.900 engaging with people that come from different 00:33:34.900 --> 00:33:38.109 backgrounds, it feels like - Um, we've been put 00:33:38.109 --> 00:33:40.430 into this state that, you know, if you're on 00:33:40.430 --> 00:33:43.069 my side, if you're not on my side and you're 00:33:43.069 --> 00:33:46.190 my enemy, which, you know, can be, you know, 00:33:46.190 --> 00:33:49.069 hyper, you know, it can be spread out through 00:33:49.069 --> 00:33:51.230 social media, like hyper expressed in that way. 00:33:51.529 --> 00:33:55.150 But, um, even at school, sometimes like, let's 00:33:55.150 --> 00:33:57.670 say there was a controversial event that happened 00:33:57.670 --> 00:33:59.569 at high school, you know, and I'm not going to 00:33:59.569 --> 00:34:01.410 get into, I'm not going to, I don't think I'm 00:34:01.410 --> 00:34:04.599 going to say too much about that. people can 00:34:04.599 --> 00:34:06.460 also get riled up there as well in the heat of 00:34:06.460 --> 00:34:08.500 the moment. So that's interesting that you bring 00:34:08.500 --> 00:34:10.900 that up because I can tell you as adults, which, 00:34:10.960 --> 00:34:15.159 you know, technically you are one now, but still 00:34:15.159 --> 00:34:18.579 a young person. But as a more experienced adult 00:34:18.579 --> 00:34:22.460 who's seen a lot more life, I mean, I recognize 00:34:22.460 --> 00:34:26.119 that polarization a lot. And we have a lot of 00:34:26.119 --> 00:34:28.119 leaders within county government who recognize 00:34:28.119 --> 00:34:30.519 that as well and work really hard on the local 00:34:30.519 --> 00:34:33.179 level to try to kind of break those. divisions 00:34:33.179 --> 00:34:36.659 down and to get back to civil discourse, right? 00:34:36.820 --> 00:34:39.860 And to get back to the point where we can actually 00:34:39.860 --> 00:34:41.860 sit in a room and talk about things and have 00:34:41.860 --> 00:34:44.719 hard conversations. It's interesting that you 00:34:44.719 --> 00:34:49.719 see it as a young person as well, but I guess 00:34:49.719 --> 00:34:52.739 my question would be, if you see it, why do you 00:34:52.739 --> 00:34:54.840 think young people are so susceptible to it? 00:34:55.469 --> 00:34:58.969 Because you are the target of social media by 00:34:58.969 --> 00:35:03.650 far more than anyone else, right? Social media 00:35:03.650 --> 00:35:08.409 is made for you, right? Other people take advantage 00:35:08.409 --> 00:35:10.989 of it. Other people use it. But these organizations, 00:35:11.409 --> 00:35:13.650 these companies, these corporations are targeting 00:35:13.650 --> 00:35:15.730 the young people because you are the more frequent 00:35:15.730 --> 00:35:17.889 user. You're the person that's going to take 00:35:17.889 --> 00:35:20.610 it into the future. If you're seeing it, why 00:35:20.610 --> 00:35:25.230 do you think... You as a group are still so susceptible 00:35:25.230 --> 00:35:29.530 to it. I think, you know, for one thing, it could 00:35:29.530 --> 00:35:31.530 just be the new digital norm. There's like, okay, 00:35:31.630 --> 00:35:35.159 this exists. These problems exist. And sometimes 00:35:35.159 --> 00:35:37.159 it could be from the hopelessness that people 00:35:37.159 --> 00:35:39.880 had within like, OK, there's no solution left. 00:35:39.960 --> 00:35:42.500 We're just going to accept the fact and just 00:35:42.500 --> 00:35:44.920 try to move on without doing any direct action 00:35:44.920 --> 00:35:47.699 on it. And when it even comes to like seeing 00:35:47.699 --> 00:35:50.960 TikToks or short reels of, let's say, controversial 00:35:50.960 --> 00:35:54.849 moments or like news clips and stuff. That may 00:35:54.849 --> 00:35:56.590 or may not be real. That may or may not be real. 00:35:56.730 --> 00:35:59.369 It can be fabricated or things can be taken out 00:35:59.369 --> 00:36:02.250 of context. And then if you just look at the 00:36:02.250 --> 00:36:05.070 comments section, I mean, it's just basically 00:36:05.070 --> 00:36:10.250 a political debate that is not televised at all. 00:36:10.349 --> 00:36:14.150 And I think for young people, they want to be 00:36:14.150 --> 00:36:16.210 in the heat of the moment. And I think that's 00:36:16.210 --> 00:36:17.710 something that we're still trying to develop 00:36:17.710 --> 00:36:20.210 with our brains. We're sometimes a little immature. 00:36:20.230 --> 00:36:22.130 We want to like... be the aggressor when you 00:36:22.130 --> 00:36:25.230 fight head on and et cetera. Sure. And for some 00:36:25.230 --> 00:36:27.769 people, that's their way of entertaining their 00:36:27.769 --> 00:36:30.389 own lives. Sometimes being internet troll or 00:36:30.389 --> 00:36:33.070 just really the person that really wants to debate 00:36:33.070 --> 00:36:35.550 any at all, anything possible. You think county 00:36:35.550 --> 00:36:37.710 governments can have an impact there at all? 00:36:37.809 --> 00:36:40.730 I think county government can do some curriculum 00:36:40.730 --> 00:36:44.690 relating to like media bias and also how to spot 00:36:44.690 --> 00:36:47.849 misinformation and how to like, you know, think 00:36:47.849 --> 00:36:52.070 more. um concrete and try to find different perspectives 00:36:52.070 --> 00:36:55.030 and try to create a well informed opinion that 00:36:55.030 --> 00:36:59.829 can be one thing but um yet again no if you even 00:36:59.829 --> 00:37:02.349 if you offer one thing anything can be taken 00:37:02.349 --> 00:37:05.050 to pull it into political use whether it's left 00:37:05.050 --> 00:37:08.110 or right. So I think for a county, they need 00:37:08.110 --> 00:37:11.309 to get a common ground. And I know the lieutenant 00:37:11.309 --> 00:37:12.769 governor has been doing a good job in trying 00:37:12.769 --> 00:37:15.510 to promote civility and trying to find a common 00:37:15.510 --> 00:37:17.769 ground from both left and right. But I think 00:37:17.769 --> 00:37:20.489 the county can definitely focus more on, again, 00:37:20.590 --> 00:37:23.090 misinformation, media training, and how to spot 00:37:23.090 --> 00:37:25.230 out things that can be taken out of context. 00:37:25.530 --> 00:37:27.579 Well, I have it on good authority that... Lieutenant 00:37:27.579 --> 00:37:29.900 Governor Heck is a huge fan of this podcast. 00:37:30.559 --> 00:37:32.480 He's an avid listener, and I'm sure he's going 00:37:32.480 --> 00:37:34.340 to love that shout out you just gave him. Oh, 00:37:34.340 --> 00:37:36.579 yeah. Well, Gavin, it's been a really interesting 00:37:36.579 --> 00:37:39.719 conversation. I'm glad you came by today. Congratulations 00:37:39.719 --> 00:37:45.699 on your impending graduation. What brings, well, 00:37:45.820 --> 00:37:48.179 not what brings, but what do you think is in 00:37:48.179 --> 00:37:49.739 the future? What does the future hold for you, 00:37:49.780 --> 00:37:52.219 do you think? I'm hoping that, you know, for 00:37:52.219 --> 00:37:55.340 my future ahead is that we can live in a society 00:37:55.340 --> 00:37:58.599 where we can see one another without the intent 00:37:58.599 --> 00:38:00.960 of harming one another. I already had a TED Talk 00:38:00.960 --> 00:38:04.199 on this regarding, like, how do we try to find 00:38:04.199 --> 00:38:06.619 common ground? And many people really want to 00:38:06.619 --> 00:38:08.579 see this, you know, future. They want to share 00:38:08.579 --> 00:38:11.539 this future or the same dream that I have. And 00:38:11.539 --> 00:38:14.449 I think it's just maybe, encouraging people to 00:38:14.449 --> 00:38:17.710 take those baby steps which can be a huge step 00:38:17.710 --> 00:38:21.010 for some people and and hopefully with that you 00:38:21.010 --> 00:38:23.190 know they can see more process future where we 00:38:23.190 --> 00:38:26.519 can find policy that can accommodate both people, 00:38:26.639 --> 00:38:29.599 work down the middle to deliver a common goal 00:38:29.599 --> 00:38:31.539 and to help create a more sustainable community 00:38:31.539 --> 00:38:33.639 in my lifetime. Well, that sounds like a great 00:38:33.639 --> 00:38:36.559 goal to me. You're interested in policy. You've 00:38:36.559 --> 00:38:38.019 done a little work with some of these government 00:38:38.019 --> 00:38:42.260 groups. You talk about going to the Capitol campus 00:38:42.260 --> 00:38:45.239 as the hill, like you're a seasoned lobbyist. 00:38:46.699 --> 00:38:48.300 Where are you going to college? Have you decided 00:38:48.300 --> 00:38:53.659 yet? Well, I have UW or Gonzaga on my back. Okay. 00:38:53.960 --> 00:38:56.860 I'm definitely trying to... Have both said, we 00:38:56.860 --> 00:38:59.440 want you? Yes, both did say they did want me. 00:38:59.500 --> 00:39:02.300 Boy, so that's a good problem to have, UW or 00:39:02.300 --> 00:39:04.340 Gonzaga. Are you leaning one way or the other? 00:39:04.639 --> 00:39:08.159 I mean, I just got the UW notification last night 00:39:08.159 --> 00:39:10.840 that I got off their wait list. So I think what 00:39:10.840 --> 00:39:12.719 I'm going to be doing moving forward is giving 00:39:12.719 --> 00:39:14.679 them a couple of calls and just questioning them 00:39:14.679 --> 00:39:16.559 and saying, what do you offer? How can you help 00:39:16.559 --> 00:39:18.739 support me in the best interest? And here are 00:39:18.739 --> 00:39:20.320 my goals and how do you think you can help me 00:39:20.320 --> 00:39:23.340 achieve them? Okay. Okay. Well, I mean, Spokane 00:39:23.340 --> 00:39:27.920 or Seattle, right? Yeah. The most populated city 00:39:27.920 --> 00:39:31.900 or the second most populated city? And either 00:39:31.900 --> 00:39:33.940 way, that's going to be a big change from Olympia 00:39:33.940 --> 00:39:35.920 High School, that's for sure. Oh, yeah, definitely. 00:39:36.079 --> 00:39:40.219 What about a run for president or something like 00:39:40.219 --> 00:39:41.920 that in the future? Maybe a lieutenant governor? 00:39:42.380 --> 00:39:45.000 Yes, I do like... I mean, I... got the chance 00:39:45.000 --> 00:39:47.039 to, you know, we always need, we always need 00:39:47.039 --> 00:39:48.820 good County commissioners. Yes. Well, we're County 00:39:48.820 --> 00:39:50.940 commissioners or even city council. I know, um, 00:39:50.980 --> 00:39:53.000 city council has been also like nagging on his, 00:39:53.019 --> 00:39:55.960 maybe you should forget about city council. Well, 00:39:56.039 --> 00:39:58.199 you know, we're County folks, wherever my path 00:39:58.199 --> 00:40:00.900 will take me. Cause I can't fully commit. Like 00:40:00.900 --> 00:40:02.059 I'm going to be president one day. It's good 00:40:02.059 --> 00:40:04.000 to have those dreams and goals, but you know, 00:40:04.019 --> 00:40:05.980 I'm also very open to like, what is the path 00:40:05.980 --> 00:40:08.960 that I'll find later in life? So, but if the 00:40:08.960 --> 00:40:11.730 time comes. I'll definitely be asking for endorsements. 00:40:11.730 --> 00:40:14.150 Well, just be open to the possibilities. And 00:40:14.150 --> 00:40:15.989 you heard it right here. What's your last name 00:40:15.989 --> 00:40:20.070 again, Gavin? Cruz. Gavin Cruz for County Commissioner, 00:40:20.329 --> 00:40:25.809 what, 2035 maybe. He's looking for your endorsement. 00:40:26.570 --> 00:40:28.309 Gavin, thanks for coming by today. Thank you 00:40:28.309 --> 00:40:30.130 so much. Appreciate the time. Congratulations 00:40:30.130 --> 00:40:32.530 again and good luck. Thank you. Appreciate it. 00:40:32.570 --> 00:40:36.440 You bet. Thanks for tuning in to County Connection. 00:40:36.500 --> 00:40:38.659 Stay in the loop by subscribing to us through 00:40:38.659 --> 00:40:40.960 your preferred podcasting app and following us 00:40:40.960 --> 00:40:43.960 on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. And don't 00:40:43.960 --> 00:40:45.920 forget to join the hub, your go to source for 00:40:45.920 --> 00:40:47.679 the latest news and updates from the Washington 00:40:47.679 --> 00:40:50.380 State Association of Counties. Until next time, 00:40:50.380 --> 00:40:52.059 stay connected and stay informed.