Students and residents alike must work to make State College politics interesting, local residents and University professors said.

"Most people, not just students, are apathetic about local politics," political science professor Mike O'Connor said, commenting about the level of involvement in the upcoming borough council and county commissioner primaries.

Most people are not interested because they believe local politics are boring, O'Connor said. Even though State College has more diversity than other small towns, it is not really on "the cutting edge of exciting issues," O'Connor said.

Council member Peter Lang said a small group cares about State College politics, but most students do not think of State College as their home.

"When I was in school, I could've cared less about local politics," Lang said, adding that getting schoolwork done and hanging out with friends were more important.

Melissa Keller, president of the Organization for Town Independent Students, said off-campus students do not realize how much certain ordinances will affect them until it is too late.

"Then students find out the hard way," she said.

Even though parking and housing issues interest him, Michael Cowan (senior-biology) said he considers himself a student who happens to live in State College rather than a permanent member of the community.

"Since I'm only going to be here for a limited time, I don't really have many major concerns that are related to the long run needs of the community," he said.

Although Elizabeth McHugh (junior-international politics) still has to research the candidates, she said she is going to vote in the May primary.

"I think students are following campus politics more closely this time of year because of the (Undergraduate Student Government) elections," she said.

Cathy Marquardt (sophomore-rehabiliation science) said she cannot get excited about local politics because she is registered out-of-state.

"My life is primarily centered around the campus, and unless I was a State College native, I don't think I could get too involved," she said.

College Democrats president Kurt Derr said getting students registered to vote is necessary to increase involvement.

Keller said the key is getting students to attend the meetings of groups such as OTIS, USG and the Graduate Student Association. These groups have members directly involved in local politics who pass on government information to the students, she said.

Jennifer Eggers (freshman-marketing) said more awareness could be created by having well-publicized debates and circulating fliers about the candidates. Having a student nominated for borough council would also help students realize that they are affected by local issues, she said.

Three students have announced their candidacy for nominations for State College Borough Council primary elections. They are: Jim Van Horn (junior-history), who is also a presidential candidate in the USG elections; Nichol Barlett (junior-health policy and administration), vice president of OTIS; and Carla Benini (sophomore-journalism).

O'Connor also said having a student on the council is a good idea. Besides being a large part of the community, students have unique experiences that enable them to share different perspectives, he said.

"Although most past attempts have been unsuccessful, students really need a voice on council," Keller said.