Adams High School’s Youth-in-Government program (YIG) recently joined a total of 1,600 high school students at an exciting opportunity-filled conference at the State Capitol. At this conference, students looking to pursue future roles in government, such as lobbyists and legislators, had the chance to simulate real positions in the state government.

Students statewide spent months preparing for the conference. After thorough discussion and debate, members composed bills which were passed through a mock legislation committee. Then the bills were passed to a model House of Representatives and Senate, where they were again debated, and determined whether or not they will pass. Finally, if successful, the bill would ultimately land on the Youth Governor’s desk and be signed into a model law. One of this year’s Youth Governors was AHS senior Annaclare Censoni.

“It is a real opportunity for kids to intelligently debate and discuss ideas. Some of the bills we pass have gone on to our real state legislature to become real laws,” said Censoni.

The privilege of being elected Youth Governor comes with a long list of duties. The following is expected of a typical Youth Governor: attend multiple conferences in Lansing, attend the Conference on National Affairs in North Carolina, attend the YMCA Youth Governor’s Conference in Washington DC, and attend various YMCA events statewide.

“Youth-in-Government is important to be in because it’s your civic duty to vote, and you might as well be an educated voter and know the system. I joined this club to better understand the political process of the United States,” said sophomore and second-year YIG member Brady Vibert.

The goal of Youth-in-Government is to develop a new generation of devoted and hardworking student leaders. This is done through their participation in local, state and national government roles.

“The best part was the fun I had on the trip, making new friends and learning about Congress,” said sophomore and first-year YIG member Anukul Banerji.

According to the YMCA Michigan Youth-in-Government’s official website, “[t]here are two ways to learn about government. The first is to read textbooks about what others have done. The second is to take that theoretical knowledge and apply it in an actual government setting.”

Michigan Youth-in-Government teaches the processes of government, including the writing of bills, the process of lawmaking, and Michigan’s current issues to thousands of kids statewide – all while having fun and making new friends.