Knowing that Nottingham had approved its participation in the district by only one vote, you'd think the Deerfield folks would have turned out in force. Many folks I know in Nottingham who support the idea of a joint high school also stayed away. What crippled the effort to build a high school was apathy on the part of its backers. We ought to listen. Only about one in five Americans from 18 to 24 votes these days.
Adults vote at just over double that rate - still pathetic.
Yet so many people complain they want a voice. The students are trying to give them one by not only running a registration drive, but also looking to frame the debate during the primary. It will open at 9 a.m. with a call to participate in democracy. Then they'll try to produce a profile of the ideal candidate for the new millennium - a nonpartisan task that asks what the essential qualities are in who will lead America in the early days of the next century. They'll ask the presidential candidates to form a compact with youth.