St. Thomas University Bachelor of Social Work interns Rebecca Arsenault, Jalen Borden, Jamie
McNeil, Alex MacAulay, and Megen Gaudet are working in my constituency office on two
projects. The first addresses bringing the voice of youth into the Legislature, the second concerns
poverty.
Youth comprise a significant part of our population that are without a voice on issues that
concern them in New Brunswick. Youth often feel dis-empowered and ignored when it comes to
political matters. Jamie and Alex are developing a proposal for a Youth Assembly that would
formally interact with the Legislative Assembly, and a campaign to raise awareness of the
importance of the youth voice to the development of government policy. Young people care, and
they have crucial and valuable perspectives to share concerning the problems within our city and
province.
Rebecca, Jalen, and Megen are working to raise awareness about poverty in the Fredericton area
and the many barriers and challenges people face when on social assistance. They are planning a
media campaign that will describe the reforms needed in social assistance policies. This will
include a commentary to explain the difficulties in accurately measuring poverty and in
describing how poverty is experienced differently by those who live it.