The inner workings of federal politics might be an esoteric interest for some. But for those with a passion for the political, the day-to-day happenings on Parliament Hill can be riveting.
For that reason, Bliss Carman Middle School played host last Tuesday to Sen. Krista Ross, who spoke to district teachers and administrators about her journey to the Senate—the upper house of Canada’s bicameral government (the lower house being the House of Commons) — and how they can start politically savvy students on a path toward a life of service in government.
Ross, the former Chief Executive Officer of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, and one of 10 Senators from New Brunswick, was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 2023. She has been a commissioner with the Electoral Boundaries and Representation Commission for New Brunswick, and currently serves as a member of the University of New Brunswick Business Faculty Advisory Board, the Ignite Fredericton Seed Board, and the Fredericton Community Foundation. In 2022, she received the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal.
District staff heard from the senator about her pathway to appointment, as well as her philosophy on the importance of her job in the Senate. In addition, the senator was eager to share information about the SENgage program, the Senate of Canada’s youth outreach program.
“The SENgage program is a really great program that teachers can take advantage of,” said Ross. “The real focus is on engaging with students. That means we can speak to students in schools, or students can come visit the Senate. We can do it virtually; we can do it in person.”
Students and teachers can even come tour the Senate with a Senator. “There’s all kinds of opportunities.”
“The SENgage program is a really great program that teachers can take advantage of… We can speak to students in schools, or students can come visit the Senate. We can do it virtually; we can do it in person.”
Sen. Krista Ross
“A lot of students who participate in SENgage get really excited about what goes on in Ottawa and choose to perhaps go to university there, become a Senate page, become a page in the House of Commons, or work as a tour guide,” she said.
Fredericton High School 2024 graduate Tait Leroux is a good example of the type of student SENgage would… well, engage. The freshman Ottawa University student is studying international studies and modern languages and has recently applied to become a Senate page.
“Senate pages work right in the Senate during sitting sessions, and I believe they help out with committees as well,” Leroux said. “It’ll be a really enlightening experience to learn about [people from] all kinds of backgrounds, and all the issues affecting Canadians.”
The duties of a Senate page are multi-faceted and include ensuring senators have the materials needed to do their jobs, assisting witnesses who appear before the body either in person or virtually, and assisting with Senate special events.
Ross said of Leroux, “I’ve met her. In fact, she came up to me in an airport and said, ‘are you Senator Ross?’ We had a great chat about her aspirations to become a page and her application process and so on. I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed that she becomes a page in the Senate because we need to have a New Brunswick page.”
Currently, there are no people from New Brunswick in the Senate page program, she said.
Leroux, who is currently an intern for Fredericton MP Jenica Atwin, has a record of volunteerism which includes helping to establish an affordable-housing unit for the homeless in the vicinity of Fredericton’s Wilmot United Church, and working as a counselor at summer camps run by Children’s International Summer Villages, now known simply as CISV.
“I think from a young age I’ve been taught to value my community, value New Brunswick, value Fredericton,” she said. “And I’ve always enjoyed just being involved in my community.”
Students with Tait’s passion for public service would do well to check out SENgage.
SENgage participants learn about the roll of a senator, the origins of the body, regional representation, and get a general crash course in how Canadian government works. “For younger students, some of the SENgage programs I’ve done have games and quizzes and contests,” Ross said.
Tait’s aunt, Diane Leroux, a Fredericton High School Grade 9 social studies and resource teacher, said, “I’m not sure if my students know about this program… but I will share this info with a few of our school’s club advisors to see if they would be interested in bringing in a senator as a guest speaker for a club meeting.”
Said Ross, “It can be a lecture, an event. It’s really about whatever level of creativity the teachers want to invite the senator to participate in.”