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By KRISTIN KILE [email protected]
Friday, June 10, 2005     Page: 3A

WILKES-BARRE – Meyers High School students have revamped the city’s Web
site.
   
Mayor Tom Leighton announced the Web site improvements during a speech
Thursday evening at Genetti Hotel & Convention Center.
    The former Web site was accessed through the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber
of Business and Industry site and contained a photo of City Hall, contact
information, and a list of city council members and city departments.
   
The new site, designed by more than 50 juniors in Ellen Thoma and Mike
Bergold’s classes, includes information for visitors, a calendar of events,
and facts about area parks and pools.
   
During their research for the project, Thoma’s class toured city hall,
where they learned about the various departments. Bergold’s class visited the
Luzerne County Historical Society to study the city’s history.
   
“There’s a lot more to the government than people realize and there’s
smaller departments than the mayor and city government,” said Mike Greenfield,
a student in Thoma’s class.
   
Students also did independent research. Molly Thoma researched Meyers High
School and Diane Bower photographed the area. The information students
gathered and articles they wrote are being used on the Web site in the “about
us” and “city government” sections.
   
This project was part of the Pennsylvania Student Voices in Local
Government Curriculum. As part of the program, teachers address government and
community issues and encourage students to become involved in local
government. This spring, 165 schools in Pennsylvania participated in the
program. This was Meyers High School’s first year in the program. It’s funded
through the University of Pennsylvania and the state Department of Education.
   
Most students said they weren’t sure if they want to pursue a career in
government. But the mayor’s son, Tom Leighton Jr., who was one of the students
involved in the project, said he would like to get involved with city
government someday.
   
The City of Wilkes-Barre’s Web site is:
   
www.wilkes-barre.pa.us