QUEEN’S PARK – Caistor resident Michael Kushnir’s strong academic record and enthusiasm to get involved with extracurricular work at school and in the community helped him to stand out among the hundreds of applicants for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s page program, said Tim Hudak, MPP for Niagara West-Glanbrook.

Tim Hudak and Caistor student Michael Kushnir stand outside of the Ontario Legislature, where Michael served as a Legislative PageMichael, a Grade 7 student at Caistor Central Public School, recently completed his term of duty at Queen’s Park, serving honourably as the first page from the newly constituted riding of Niagara West-Glanbrook.

“The Legislative Page Program is a highly competitive program with over 500 applications for every session,” Hudak said. “After meeting with Michael, it’s clear why he was selected among the hundreds of excellent students who applied this session.”

Legislative pages work in the Legislative Chamber of the Provincial Parliament. They serve a Term of Duty of up to six weeks and are granted a leave of absence from school during that time. Pages participate in the legislative process, act as messengers in the Legislative Chamber, meet with politicians and officials, learn how laws are made and how the Province of Ontario is governed. The Program receives hundreds of applications per session and only a small few are chosen to work at Queen’s Park.

“Michael is an exceptionally mature and hard worker, who brought a great deal of enthusiasm to the job,” Hudak said. “He represented his school and the people of Niagara West-Glanbrook very well. And he has a very bright future ahead of him.”

Interested in Applying to the Legislative Page Program?

The Legislative Page Program is open to Grade 7 and Grade 8 students in Ontario with an academic average of 80 per cent or higher. Applicants must be actively involved in a variety of extracurricular activities, both in and outside of school, show an interest in current affairs and get along well with both their peers and adults. While at the Legislature, pages are taught Legislative process, social studies, and the arts, and are tutored in mathematics.

Students interested in applying for a page position, and who meet the above requirements, must request and complete an application package. A package and further information on the program can be obtained by phone, 416-325-7457, email, page_program@ontla.ola.org, by mail, Room 191, Legislative Building, Queen's Park, Toronto, M7A 1A2, and on the Web at www.ontla.on.ca. The deadline to return applications for the fall session is June 15, 2008. Grade 8 students' completed application packages must be received by December 15 of the year they enter grade eight.