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EAST AMHERST, N.Y. --The graduating class at Williamsville East High School has had a unique educational experience as the COVID-19 pandemic began their freshman year.

Senior Aniyah Ramadan was one of a group of students who sat down with Gov. Kathy Hochul Friday to talk about how social media has impacted her life and education.

"The things that we said today, I do think they kind of made her think a little bit about what to do next and how to move on from there so I do think she's going to take what we said today back to Albany," Ramadan said.

Hochul, who has held similar roundtable discussions across the state, said she is learning from students as lawmakers fine-tune social media restrictions she believes they can pass this session.

"We have no choice but to take action. We have seen the negative effects of social media on young people as early as nine and 10-year-olds who are radically different children than they would have been if they weren't pulled by this addictive force into the dark spaces of social media," Hochul said.

The governor, along with the attorney general and prominent Democrats, is championing legislation that would require parental consent in order for kids under 18 to access what she calls addictive social media algorithms and another to limit the ability of companies to collect personal data from children and monetize it.

She said it's part of the administration's focus on children's mental health, citing a rise in suicides and suicidal behavior corresponding with the proliferation of algorithms.

"No other state can match how we are addressing this, making sure that schools like this and others have these services available within them, so my view is if we can get help to students now, if they have challenges, we can avoid a whole lifetime of them needing services in the future," Hochul said.

Social media platforms are pushing back against the bills, arguing, among other things, the algorithms are the best tool to protect kids from inappropriate content. The governor has another theory about their motivation.

"That's the best way they have to keep drawing people in so they continue to be able to advertise to them and make a profit off of our children," she said.

Ramadan, who is heading to college, said she would still want access to the algorithms and social media experience she knows, but sometimes its so overwhelming she takes matters into her own hands.

"Recently I just had to disable it a couple months back because I had a lot of assignments to do, a lot of things to do but also in that time with not having social media, I also learned to just enjoy myself," she said.

Hochul said New York will be the first in the nation to tackle this issue.

She said many social media companies do want to ensure the health and safety of children and there should be a national standard but wants the state to lead the way until Congress takes action.

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Hochul pushes social media restrictions on youth while meeting with students - Spectrum News