ROSS TOWNSHIP — Senior Molly Cropenbaker didn't much care for politics and thought many state and national politicians were fake.

        That was before the 17-year-old Ross High School student participated Thursday in a live video conference with U.S. Sen. George Voinovich as part of her government class.

        “He was honest and down to Earth,” Molly said after class. “He made me look differently at politics. I feel better there are people like him in government. It made me proud to be an Ohio citizen.”

        Molly was one of five stu dents who posed questions to the senator during a 40-minute interactive session. It was the first time the school had used its distance-learning equipment for such a hookup with Capitol Hill. In part, it was made possible through the SchoolNet program that provided money for Ohio schools to install high-speed cable for video, voice and data transmission, initiated when Mr. Voinovich was Ohio's governor.

        In preparation for the conference, the students broke into groups to brainstorm questions. After narrowing the field to questions on foreign affairs, domestic affairs, campaigning and daily life, the students picked the best ones, said senior Joe Klamo, who asked the senator about military deployment.

        “One of my challenges as a teacher is to combine technology with what we do in the classroom,” said govern ment teacher Brien Miller. “The challenge of this class is to get kids interested in politics. Young people have to be convinced their government does care about them before they care about government. I think my kids do now.”

        During the exchange Mr. Voinovich gave his views on the budget surplus, what the United States' military role should be in the world, what it's like to be a senator, and campaign finance. His top four concerns as a freshman senator were fiscal responsibility, bringing more power to state and local governments, keeping the United States competitive in the world marketplace, and national security. He urged the students to stay involved in their government and to volunteer in their community.

        Except for a five-minute glitch when Ross was disconnected from the Senate studio from which Mr. Voinovich was broadcasting, the conference went well, the students said.

        “I always liked politics,” said Derrick Ramsey, 17. “He talked to us like people. He said stuff I could understand. He knocked it down to the high-school level.”

Absentee voting growing by thousands
City's population down 9.2% in '90s
Shift to suburbs takes off
Hundreds pay respects to Berry
Final honor given Berry
Boy dies in blaze; relative burned
Troubled teens program probed
Abuse that led to baby's death described in court
Black chamber officials deny writing Reece smear letter
Boy, 17, sentenced in concrete incident
Census: Cities shrink; burbs sprawl
CROWLEY: Kentucky politics
Floral paradise: Delhi invites visit
Grand jury gets case of woman left on floor
SAMPLES: Legacy of a craftsman
Man who hired killer will stay in mental unit
Mayoral debate barbed
Ohio man faces murder charge in brother's shooting death
Social links being measured
Spill heads down Ohio
State auditor checking tip on city spending
Technology links senator, teens
Tristate A.M.Report