A Peer Juror’s Experience
By Haley Beube
Now I’m a college student, but I
consider my 3 years in high school
as a peer juror a rewarding and
educational experience. It definitely taught me to stay
out of trouble. Because of the Peer Jury
Program, I have seen the results of mistakes being made by kids just like me. I
learned from them, and we learned from each other how to make good choices and
to stay safe. Also, I learned valuable lessons and developed skills
I continue to use today and will continue to use in the future, including effective communication skills in
highly tense situations and being able to ask the right questions.
From my experience, the Program is
also beneficial to our community because it relieves police of run of the mill
issues, like underage drinking, so they can focus on more serious issues to
support our community. Part of the Peer
Jury Program was having teens do mandatory community service. As a result, I learned of the wonderful
service opportunities we have in our County, and I have looked into helping at
them as well. Also, because I volunteered my time I felt I was giving back to
my community and helping others.
Kids who took take advantage of a
second chance were from all backgrounds. I observed kids learn their
lesson and lend their time with mandatory court-ordered community
service. Also, the Program is preventative because kids are told
clearly what the repercussions and sentence would have been if they did not
have access to Peer Jury.
The Program makes our community better
with the service as well as allowing our kids to succeed and not have it
jeopardize their future.
My hope is that our Board will think logically and clearly about the repercussions
of discontinuing a successful Peer Jury Program. Not only will it jeopardize
the futures and potential of our County's children, but it will reflect badly
upon the community as whole. When our youth succeeds, our whole community
succeeds.
