Senator Cardin greets Mr. Miletich and his students.

On Monday, September 11, Maryland Senator Ben Cardin visited Eleanor Roosevelt High School to talk to Mr. Alexander Miletich’s fourth-period class about the impacts of 9/11 and the importance of public service. The new PG County superintendent, Millard House III, and ERHS Principal, Dr. Portia Barnes, also met with the students. Senator Cardin’s visit lasted the entirety of the fourth period, starting with a welcome by Dr. Barnes, followed by remarks from the Senator about the fateful day 22 years ago, and ending with a Q&A session with the students. 

During the lecture, Senator Cardin discussed disinformation—“saying something you know is not true to convince people to do what you want them to”—and how it affects the government. For example, disinformation given by former president Donald Trump led to the January 6 attack. “Learning government,” he stated, “is the anecdote to disinformation.” He applauded the scholars for learning about civic education in high school and hoped it would lead to public service. At the end of the lecture, students asked Senator Cardin about his participation in the Maryland government and his viewpoint on public service as a person who works for the state. His response: “I wanted to make a difference, particularly for people who otherwise their voices would not be heard.”

Mr. Miletich and his fourth-period class positively regarded Senator Cardin’s visit. He felt “it was a great opportunity to meet a member of our federal government.” As an LSN Government teacher, he thought it was important for his students “to hear when he addressed what an impact average citizens can have on politics.” From the students’ point of view, meeting someone so high in government made them feel inspired. Sophomore Jimmy Huynh liked “hearing his ideology on what this country should be instead of what it shouldn’t be.” Adding to Huynh’s viewpoint, sophomore Charis Moore realized that “not all politicians have bad intentions […] despite all of the backlash in the news, people like him are making a positive impact on the world.”

Senator Cardin’s visit also made students reflect on the importance of meeting government officials. Sophomore Preston Okwelisi believes that “students should try to meet a person in government” because they learn about the subject in school. Sophomore Audrey Canaday thought “learning about the different aspects of having government positions” is valuable, too.