The Jackson City Council will hold its regular Tuesday, March 24 meeting not at its traditional spot at City Hall but at JSU’s Mississippi e-Center at JSU.
The 6 p.m. meeting at the eCenter, 1230 Raymond Road, will include undergraduate students from the Department of Political Science, as was graduate students from the Department of Public Policy and Administration and the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, said Jean C. Frazier, state relations coordinator, JSU Division of Institutional Advancement.
“The students will participate during the public comments portion of the meeting regarding current issues facing our city such as infrastructure, water and sewer, and the recent closing of South Jackson’s Kroger Grocery store,” Frazier said.
Branded as one of the varied initiatives included in JSU’s State and Local Government program, the change in venue for the City Council meeting is designed to bring government to the campus. The meeting holds much promise for student activism and for engagement among the administration, faculty and staff and the West Jackson community.
A part of JSU’s State and Local Government goals is the ongoing effort to engage the University and community electorate in the local and statewide government processes.
Jordan Carter, an honors Political Science major with an emphasis in Pre-Law, views the meeting as an opportunity for students to witness the municipal government process and the impact of decisions made on families and communities.
“This is an excellent opportunity for our students to see first-hand how government works,” said Carter. “Having the meeting on our campus gives some of us who may not visit City Hall the opportunity to express our views and opinions. It provides us with a forum to voice our opinions on issues affecting our communities and neighborhoods, like the closing of the South Jackson Kroger Grocery Store.”
The overall mission of JSU’s State and Local Government program is to engage the University family, including students, with our local and statewide processes and electorates while promoting the JSU academy and enterprise, Frazier said.
For more information, contact Frazier at 601-979-4208 or jean.c.frazier@jsums.edu.