Friday, April 16, 1999
New citizens debut on Net
Three Rivers school ceremony going around the world
BY BERNIE MIXON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MIAMI TOWNSHIP — With the click of a mouse, Anne Griffiths' family half a world away in New Zealand can watch as Mrs. Griffiths and 71 others become naturalized citizens.
In what may be a first, the taped ceremony will be posted on the Internet, giving family and friends in native countries a chance to witness the event.
Three Rivers Middle School will provide the backdrop, and 580 students will witness the soon-to-be Americans take the oath at 1 p.m. today. Magistrate Judge Jack Sherman Jr. of U.S. District Court will preside.
“Probably both of my brothers and my nephews will watch it,” said Mrs. Griffiths, of Miami Township. “As soon as I let my nephews know the site, I'm sure they will download it.”
Naturalization ceremonies have been held at the school every three years since 1987. Over the years, 3,000 students have witnessed about 300 immigrants become citizens.
“It's so rewarding. Students can appreciate so much being a citizen of this country,” said Marney Murphy, media specialist at the middle school and coordinator of the event. “You can't teach patriotism, but you can feel it in the gym when we have a naturalization ceremony.”
And the beauty of having it posted on the Internet is that students from other schools can learn about the process. “The education this brings about is rewarding,” Mrs. Murphy said.
Earlier this year, a similar naturalization ceremony was held at McAuley High School in College Hill. In May, another naturalization ceremony will be held at Whittier School in Price Hill.
The Three Rivers event will be taped by the Hamilton/Clermont Cooperative Association of Boards of Education, which provides computer services to schools in the two counties. It will be posted early next week on the Internet (www.hcca.ohio.gov/
3riversceremony/). For Mrs. Griffiths, the fact that her family in New Zealand can share in the experience is icing on the cake. She credits her children — Rebecca, 13, a seventh-grader who will watch her mother take the oath, and Douglas, 10, in fifth grade — with helping her pass the test.
“I didn't know the pledge,” Mrs. Griffiths said. “They would test me every night in history and had to teach me the "Pledge of Allegiance.'”
Having the event captured for the world to see over the Internet is exciting, Mrs. Griffiths said.
FOP head wants city manager's decision investigated
Feds seize handguns, arrest supremacist
Major crimes keep going down
Plaque would note Sultana's hellish end
Company-owned defibrillator used saved employee
County pushes for 2nd drug court
Fernald uranium will be moved
Ice cream issue to cool for a month
Used-car bargain hunters get taken for a ride
Day care for dogs
GET TO IT
Scholars are skeptical Jeses was a vegetarian
Baskets carry woman's self-confidence
Ky. debates how to split 606 code
Lucas to avoid GOP's top hope
World Peace Bell starts world tour
35-year prison term for killer, 16
Alley may be named for dance teacher
Clermont urged to push out strippers
Council tries to replace clinics
Covington prisoner's escape mystifies jailers
Detours necessary to eastbound U.S. 50
Dispute settled over child-support fees
Driver charged in crash that killed passenger
New citizens debut on Net
Ruckus raised over development
School nurse doled out love
Seniors who passed Ohio test can expect $500 voucher soon
TRISTATE DIGEST
