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High School Youth And Government Club

Decent Essays

This weekend, Exeter High School 's Youth and Government Club participated in the YMCA 's annual mock legislature. Exeter 's delegation performed exceptionally well this weekend, adding substantive insight to bill debating, and taking home several awards. Senior Eric Joy won the best lobbyist award and Senior Shereen Elaidi won a bill writing award.

Youth and Government Club: A Crash Course
YMCA 's Youth and Government Club is a nationwide program focusing on providing a platform for politically engaged high school students to voice their opinions by emulating the state government. Each year, the Exeter High School delegation goes to the Statehouse in Concord to debate pre-written bills. Bills this year focused on an eclectic range of …show more content…

Saluto, "the club had a lot of members and was very senior heavy." The disproportionate amount of seniors -- the Class of 2014 at the time -- resulted in the club losing a significant number of members last year. A key issue for the advisors and club members is re-building the club and recruiting underclassmen.

Most EHS Government Club members prepare bills for the mock legislature. One of the club 's two presidents, Senior Jacob Poirier, introduced Senate Bill No. 5: The Addition of a Computer Science Requirement in Table 306-2 of the Minimum Standards for Public School Approval. Poirier stated that the "vague and abstract" nature of NH 's current information and communications technologies requirements prompted him to write the bill. SB No. 5 passed committee, but the Senate floor ran out of time while debating it.

Government Club 's other president, Senior Andrew MacDougall, co-authored House Bill No. 78 Relative to Court Appointed Attorneys with Sophomore James Kennish. MacDougall states that his inspiration for HB No. 78 came from "binge-watching clips from John Oliver 's show [while] procrastinating." HB No. 78 was one of the few bills the Governor signed into law this year.

This is Ms. Saluto 's 3rd year and Ms. Catcher 's 4th year advising Government Club. Ms. Saluto stated that her cooperating teacher -- the teacher she interned with -- was Ms. Vandersall, so upon her retirement, it "seemed like a natural fit to advise Government Club."

Ms.

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