CBS News Seeks Political Commentary from Hillcrest Students

Mouths fell open when Dave Price, the personable morning weather guy on CBS News’ The Early Show, stood in a Hillcrest Elementary classroom on September 29 and announced, “Next week, you’re going to be the most famous third grade class in America.”

And so it was. Interested in soliciting a youthful point of view about the election year’s presidential debates, Price and an Early Show camera crew visited Hillcrest and spent 40 minutes each in a third, fourth and fifth grade class. Accompanied by Principal Terry McVey, Price asked students to participate in mock presidential debates and interviewed them about all matters presidential. The segment he taped aired October 7 to wide acclaim.

“As I prepared for work in Buffalo, New York, I was blessed to catch the segment . . . featuring your students,” viewer Denise Baumgardner emailed to Ms. McVey. “Those children were absolutely amazing. I laughed, I cried, I was so incredibly moved by the wisdom and insight of our youth. In a media filled with negative, we sometimes forget about the hope and possibilities of the next generations. Keep up the great work at Hillcrest Elementary, and please thank the students for a great start to my day!”

Dave Price of CBS’s “The Early Show” exhorts Hillcrest students to tell him their opinions.

The taping itself was exciting enough. Dressed mostly in blue and yellow T-shirts in celebration of school spirit day, the students in Leana Janney’s third grade class sat quietly and intently in a circle. In the center, classmates Vic and Rosalie debated whether giving chocolate to everyone (one of Vic’s ideas) might ultimately lead to widespread health problems.

While school officials knew in advance that the news crew would visit Hillcrest, students weren’t told about their star turn until a day before the filming. “They were really excited about having the chance to be on the national news,” said Amy Bradshaw, a fourth-grade teacher whose class hosted Price.

“This is so much fun,” Price said between interviews. “These children come up with some of the most intelligent things to say, and I’m always so impressed when I visit schools like this. We could all learn something from them.”

In Bradshaw’s class, student Caroline at first got a case of the giggles when Price put his face close to hers to ask her who, of all the people in the world, should be president. She recovered quickly, however, to explain why her mom should be president (“She tries to do what she wants – just tries to be herself, to be my mom.”) and why she wouldn’t want her mom to be president (“She’d be gone all the time.”).

With earnest expressions, students wondered whether the candidates could keep all their promises and whether they sometimes said things just to help them get elected. One student suggested that family is more important than the presidency and that the candidates perhaps only want the job for the money it pays.

Are you listening, America?

More Photos

Story by Diana Spencer Photos by Charles Herndon, Office of Communications