Clark Fourth-Graders Get Personal Tour of the State House

Fourth graders from the Frank K. Hehnly School in Clark traveled to Trenton this month for a visit to the New Jersey State House.

Instead of the standard tour of the State House that features observing the General Assembly and Senate Chambers from upstairs viewing rooms, the fourth graders were most fortunate to get a personalized tour from Senator Christopher “Kip” Bateman.  

Senator Bateman accompanied the fourth graders to first the General Assembly Chambers, then the Senate Chambers, where he gave them a historical perspective of the State House, pointed out how legislators vote via the red and green buttons on their desks, and reviewed the composition of both houses of the legislature.  

Senator Bateman also allowed the Frank K. Hehnly fourth graders to sit in the actual General Assembly and Senate Chambers during their visit, thus the fourth graders were allowed to sit in the same seats New Jersey’s lawmakers do when the legislature is in session.  

Senator Bateman explained that he was a member of the General Assembly from 1995 to 2007, and the New Jersey Senate from 2008 through the present time, representing the 16th Legislative District of New Jersey which includes part of Somerset, Hunterdon, Mercer and Middlesex Counties.  

The fourth graders peppered Senator Bateman with a wide variety of questions on each of the chambers, how the legislature works, and his career as a legislator, among others. At the conclusion of the Senator’s remarks, the fourth graders posed for group pictures with him in the Senate Chambers, in one picture holding up masks depicting the likeness of the Senator.

Superintendent of Schools Kenneth Knops, who accompanied the fourth graders on the field trip to the State House, remarked that the fourth graders thoroughly enjoyed their field trip and the personalized tour the Senator provided.  

“Through meeting Senator Bateman and gaining a first-hand perspective by being seated in both the General Assembly and Senate Chambers, the field trip was particularly enriching to our fourth graders," said Knops. "Senator Bateman provided the students with a great deal of information about how their state government works, and the students’ interest was sparked and heightened, leading to a wide variety of questions of the Senator. The staff and I are grateful to Senator Bateman for providing our students with such a focused and engaged learning experience. It was a cherished and memorable field trip for our fourth graders.”