WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Daniel K. Inouye and Daniel K. Akaka announced that the United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) has begun its statewide selection process. Two Hawai‘i students will be selected to join 102 other delegates from March
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Daniel K. Inouye and Daniel K. Akaka announced that the United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) has begun its statewide selection process.
Two Hawai‘i students will be selected to join 102 other delegates from March 6 to 13, 2010 for the program’s 48th Annual Washington Week.
The program was established in 1962 by Senate Resolution 324, which resolved: “That the Senate hereby expresses its willingness to cooperate in a nationwide competitive high school program which would give several representative high school students from each state a short indoctrination into the operation of the United States Senate and the Federal Government generally, if such a program can be satisfactorily arranged and completely supported by private funds with no expense to the Federal Government.”
Since inception, more than 4,700 students have participated in this unique leadership education program that is sponsored each year by the United States Senate and fully funded and administered by The Hearst Foundations — no government funds are utilized. The centerpiece of the program is Washington Week, when the USSYP brings two students from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity to Washington for an intensive learning experience about the Senate and the federal government overall.
The students meet and have direct interaction with the highest level government officials in the nation, including the President, a Justice of the Supreme Court, several United States Senators, cabinet secretaries and other policy makers.
Each of the 104 student delegates will receive a $5,000 undergraduate college scholarship, in addition to the all-expenses paid trip to the nation’s capital.
The student delegates will tour Capitol Hill, the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, the Supreme Court and other historic and educational sites in Washington, D.C.
The delegate selection is administered by each state’s chief school officer in cooperation with high school principals and guidance counselors.
Delegates must be junior or senior elected student officers for the 2009 – 2010 academic year and reside in the state where they attend school.
Eligibility considerations may also be made for student representatives elected or selected (selected by a panel, commission or board) to district, regional or state-level civic or educational organizations.
Each student must be a permanent resident of the United States and currently enrolled in a public or private secondary school located in the state (including for these purposes the District of Columbia) in which either one of his or her parents or guardians legally resides. Exceptions to the residency rule are made for the Department of Defense Education Activity and for states with schools under Interstate Compacts.
Names of students selected will be formally announced mid-December. Since application deadlines vary by state, interested students in Hawai‘i should contact their high school principal or the state-level selection administrator.
