Junior Mayor Elections

On Thursday 10th May, our School Captains attended the 2018 Junior Mayor Elections at the LF Payne Town Hall in Chelsea. It was an opportunity to celebrate young people by showcasing their talents and achievements. The Junior Mayor Elections form part of the annual Kingston Youth Festival. With the theme of 'What does hope mean for our community?", 25 Year 6 students represented their school and presented a speech sharing their ideas and thoughts on this topic. Our School Captain, Reese, presented a speech which had been collaboratively written by our School Leaders.

Following voting and the announcement of the 2018 Junior Mayor, students had the opportunity to meet our Mayor, Cr Steve Staikos. Our School Captains were proud to be a part of a longstanding tradition that dates back over 50 years in our local community.

What Does Hope Mean For Our Community?

Good morning. My name is Reese Armstrong and I am one of the School Captains at Kingswood Primary School. I would like to begin by thanking the Mayor and the City of Kingston for this chance to speak today. I welcome the opportunity to continue to represent the students, in collaboration with the Junior Councillors, as the City of Kingston Junior Mayor in 2018.

The dictionary defines hope as: the expectation of something desired.

And defines community as: a social group of people that have similar character, agreement and identity.

So what does this mean for The City of Kingston?

We already live in a community that offers its residents, quality schools, health care centres, parks & gardens, sporting clubs and a range of community events that bring people together.

This raises the question, is there anything more to hope for?

Well as leaders, there is an expectation that we continue to maintain and explore ways to improve what we already have as a community. As Junior Mayor, I would incorporate the Habits of Mind dispositions of Thinking Interdependently, by working together with the Mayor and Junior Councillors in promoting: Thinking And Communicating With Clarity and Precision, by clearly outlining our goals and priorities, Thinking Flexibly, by looking at things in different ways and Listening With Understanding and Empathy, by devoting time to what it is our community hopes for.

The Kingston Community has put its trust into the hands of us as student leaders and as leaders we have the opportunity to deliver hope to everyone in the community

As Junior Mayor, I will work collaboratively with the Mayor and the Junior Councillors in promoting what it is the people in our community hope for.

In closing I would like to present the following acrostic poem

Hope is having the

Opportunity to be

Part of a community that has an

Environment that is safe, warm, caring and sharing!

There’s nothing more our community could hope for!

Thank you