On Jan. 24 and 25, five students put their passions and knowledge to the test at the Texas Youth and Government state competition sponsored by the YMCA. Despite competitors not being ranked, junior Erin Barry received the “Outstanding Club Leader” award, sophomore Kate Schulle participated as part of the Governor’s Cabinet and senior Alden Yi competed as the Hyde Senate Clerk. Club president and senior, Kayla Frazier, led the team through the competition, working together to pass and defend bills as well as challenge their opponents’ ideas. Club sponsor Jayne Serna said that the club is great for students who are interested in government and politics, and that the bills they fight for shows a lot about who they are.

“One of the things I truly appreciate about these students’ involvement was that they thought deeply about solutions for serious, real-life problems,” Serna said. “Their convictions speak highly about who they are as students and who they are becoming as citizens.”

The Texas Youth and Government program was established in 1936 to give students a chance to discover how the government works through mock trials and government situations. Barry has been a member of the club for two years and is a part of the legislative branch, where her job consists of creating and defending bills. On the branch, she competes with other members and works as a team to listen to everyone’s opinion, while also learning to defend her own views.

“I’ve always been really interested in history, politics and government, so as soon as I found out that the club was being established, I knew I wanted to join,” Barry said. “I felt like it would be a safe haven for my ideas and passions.” 

Barry said that after joining the club, she immediately wanted to start competing in order to improve her talents and meet students with different or opposing opinions.

“I really wanted to learn to think quicker on my feet and expose myself to alternate viewpoints, so I had no second thoughts about attending the first competition,” Barry said. “It was really fun, so I was happy to attend the next competition I could.”

For Frazier, she said that joining the club provided her with a chance to discover how the government worked, as well as prepare for a future career.

“Part of me wanted to better understand how the legislative branch worked in practice,” Frazier said. “I also thought it would bring me closer to what I want to do with my life.”

Frazier said that she enjoys competing against other students and seeing the legislative branch work in different situations.

“My favorite part about competing is testing the arguments of my opponents and to see if the legislation can go into practice, and to come up with a compromise that is constitutional,” Frazier said. “It’s fun to argue with people and understand their point of view.”

Junior Matthew Grimm discovered the club during a Robotics meeting. He said that he immediately enjoyed the environment and experience and has been a competitive member ever since.

“I like how close everyone in the club is, they feel like family,” Grimm said. “At competition, you can also meet people from other schools and make friends.”

For certain students who are part of the Youth and Government Club, a future in politics seems evident. Schulle said that when she joined, she immediately found her place among students who shared the same passions as her.

“It’s a great program, it’s a family,” Schulle said. “You know how they say ‘find your niche in high school, somewhere where you can really feel like you belong.’ Texas Youth and Government is really the one place where I feel like I can be myself.”