May 9, 2007 — St. John resident J'Nay Penn will soon be heading to Washington, D.C. The 15-year-old Eudora Kean High School sophomore starts her one-month summer job as a U.S. House of Representatives page on July 8.
"It's going to be a growing-up experience," Penn said Wednesday.
The daughter of Linda and Jose Penn, J'Nay Penn said that she'll share a dorm with two other young women. Although she won't find out who they are until the program starts, Penn said she looks forward to learning to deal with people from different backgrounds.
And she said the experience will look good on her college application. Penn said she plans to be a graphic designer and hopes to attend the Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta.
Penn keeps busy with membership in the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority's Young Pearls Program, was on Eudora Kean's foreign language Quiz Bowl team and will be inducted into the school's Honor Society on May 18.
Penn, who also has two older brothers, is second in her class of 236 students.
She's also a member of Eudora Kean's Student Council, which is how she learned about the House page program. "I researched it and found what it was about," she said.
While she doesn't plan a career in government, like some pages, Penn thinks it will provide good experience.
Penn said she likes being involved with her various activities because St. John doesn't offer much else to do. "We have to find little things to do to keep ourselves occupied," she said.
Penn went to Methodist Pre-school on St. John before attending Julius E. Sprauve School. She said that while an eighth grader, she transferred to Eudora Kean High School.
According to a press release from Delegate Donna M. Christensen, pages must have at least a 3.0 grade point average and a record of community service.
Christensen said they live in a residence hall and work in teams delivering priority correspondence, legislative material and small packages within the Capitol complex. Some work in the House members' cloakroom taking and delivering messages for representatives.
Pages earn about $1,450 a month.
Penn is the third V.I. student to serve as a House page. Ian Woods, who was an Antilles School junior, served in 2002; while Keryn McGregor, who was a student at St. Croix Educational Complex, served in 2005.
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