Lt. Gov. Sally Pederson will address the topic of citizenship during a visit to a senior seminar class today.

The class, taught by assistant professor of English Jose Amaya, is looking at the relationship between minority literature and citizenship.

“I thought it would be interesting to see how local politicians view citizenship at the state or national level,” Amaya said.

A series of state politicians have been invited to participate in class discussions. With the support of Thomas Kent, chairman of the English department, Amaya was also able to recruit the Iowa House majority leader and the president of the Senate to speak in the class later this semester.

“It’s my feeling college students don’t get the opportunity to go one on one with elected leaders,” he said.

Allison Engel, aide to the lieutenant governor, said Pederson will be addressing a new report released on Feb. 10 called the Millennium Project. The report, sponsored by the National Association of the Secretary of State, deals with the attitudes of American youth on politics, citizenship, government and voting.

Focus groups from three states, including Iowa, provided information for the study. According to the report, fewer than one in five people age 18-24 voted in the 1998 midterm election.

“People are feeling more disengaged because of the impeachment trial. This class is a good example of how you get people engaged in the political process,” Engel said. “Professor Amaya should be congratulated. He is clearly part of the solution.”

Amaya said he thinks Pederson is fulfilling her promise to be involved in Iowa education.

“To my knowledge, it’s the first time any currently elected official from the government office has participated in the classroom,” he said. “I’m hoping the class will come away with a sense of how elected officials consider citizenship.”

The discussion is open to the public and will be held in Room 2050 of Agronomy Hall at 2:10 p.m.