In early April the State House hosted over 350 high school juniors and seniors from across the state for the annual Student Government Day, organized by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) in collaboration with the three branches of state government.
The event gave students the chance to engage directly with government officials and participate in a simulated joint committee hearing. During the session, they focused on the proposed "Act Promoting Safe Technology Use and Distraction-Free Education for Youth." In the afternoon, students had two options with some students choosing to remain in the House and Senate Chambers to hear from members of the executive branch and participate in a debate while role-playing as legislators. A second group of students opted to joined Supreme Judicial Court law clerks and interns for a lunch at the John Adams Courthouse, followed by a tour of the building.
Two of the attending students were NRHS seniors Ava Wyman (pictured speaking above) and Winston Zhao. These NRHS representatives were nominated to represent Nashoba based on their roles as Student Representative for the Nashoba School Committee and School Council participation, respectively. Both students acknowledged the impact of the day, specifically on how it improved their understanding of the work and process behind our state government. Notably Mr. Zhao was especially impressed by the debate portion of the event, saying, "It really helped with how I plan to approach leadership going forward... I realized how many diverse perspectives there are from being in a room with other students from across Massachusetts. That’s something that I’ll take with me."
This feedback was very much in line with Governor Maura Healey's goal for the event which was “[to provide] students a unique opportunity to see firsthand how they can make a difference in their communities today, and maybe even as elected officials themselves in the future... I hope all of these students will consider pursuing public service in some form.”
Want to learn more about this event? Check out the DESE's coverage of the event here.