Monthly Archives: February 2024

A Need-to-Know Basis of the Youth and Government’s Media Section

At a typical Texas Youth and Government State Conference, one can find students in legislative, state affairs, judicial, and less commonly known media. This section only takes 50 students from all districts to the state conference. Despite being one of four sections, not many people know about the section or what it does. In the real world, however, the media plays a huge role in connecting people to the government. An aspect that the Youth and Government attempt to model.

According to Ishmael Behrhorst, the senior director for marketing at the YMCA, media was the last section to be added to YG after it was founded. He states in an interview that media “is the balance to be able to tell stories of everything that’s happening at the conference while also replicating what happens every day in real life.” Activities include writing news-report-like stories, creating social media posts, and photographing delegates. Students have the freedom to “use their creativity, art, video skills, and even their human to be able to tell the stories that really matter and affect us daily.”

The media section has transformed throughout the years. Assignments from the previous year’s state conference differ significantly from the current ones. Esmerelda Rios, a media co-editor-in-chief, says, “Social media used to be a newer concept that not everyone was sure about. But with time, we have come to see how integrated media is in our society and politics and how it can help inform audiences. This is definitely reflected in the changes made to the YG media section because it is now reflecting real-world media to actively engage and inform people.” As the world undergoes constant change, the Youth and Government media section stands ready to adapt.

This section has done a lot for its students. For Gracie Harding, a media co-editor-in-chief, media has “helped her photography skills tremendously.” For Rios, it is a “tool to help her reach her goals.” As much as media changes based on the world’s evolving trends, the section should also cater to the needs of its students. Harding expresses discontent on the section’s news articles, she says she “would like to make it more visual based and interactive. When the target audience is our generation and our participants, let’s be honest, after a long day of trials and submitting bills, students would rather skim an article than read it.” Every year, the media section enhances the YG experience, ensuring it stays informative and engaging for all generations. It’s always keeping on track to meet the evolving world and its student needs, offering a truly immersive journey.

By: Medha Rapuri

By Benjamin Wise

My name is Benjamin Wise and I will be writing about the bills that I heard about in court today. Today, I went to the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas. Inside the Capitol, there are many different places. The place I went to is in the Senate chamber where they pass bills. When I first got here, to the Senate chamber in the Capitol, they were talking about a bill they wanted to pass for people who work outside to keep them from overheating. One of the main things about this bill is that they wanted thermometers on the job site to measure the heat and also to have water on the site just to keep people from overheating and mandatory breaks for work to keep them from overheating and if workers don’t get this then the company will be fined with a class C misdemeanor. They also wanted small cups of water for the workers to drink whenever they got too hot. Also, they said that they could get water bottles but right now they get small cups for their mandatory break. The person passing the bill wanted a 20-minute break for the workers because that was enough time for them to cool down and drink some water. The author of the bill said that above 90 degrees is considered extreme heat and that that’s enough to take a break. However, someone countered him and said that they think 90 degrees isn’t too much and that workers can still overheat at around 80°. When they voted for the bill it did not pass the first time but Second vote when they did a recount the bill passed.

The second bill they talked about was about circumcision. The author of the bill said that Jewish babies should be allowed to be circumcised. Many people did not agree with him. They said that being circumcised can lead to many sexual diseases and normal diseases as well. However, the author said that being circumcised gives you benefits. Another argument they had is that babies can’t give consent to have circumcisions and they said that once you turn 18 you should be able to choose if you want to get circumcised. The bill did not pass.

For the third and final bill, the author proposed that all private and public school teachers must be first aid and CPR certified. One of their arguments was that when professionals arrive to try and save a student who has something wrong with them it could be too late for that child and a teacher who is first aid or CPR satisfied could save peoples lives. They said that it is a situation you would not want to be in but if it does happen it’s always good to be prepared. The bill didn’t pass.

By Kenneth Pham

The YMCA’s Youth and Government program consists of many great opportunities and engaging activities that develop crucial skills for the young generation. Although this program can foster increased necessary abilities such as writing, public speaking, debating, and analysis, one of the most important skills that Youth and Government promotes is leadership. The 77th Texas Youth Lieutenant Governor, Ryan Lee, is a paradigm of these characteristics, especially leadership. Being the president of his own Youth and Government club at Glenda Dawson High School, he has become an inspiration to not only me but to the rest of his constituents that he is representing. Amongst all other qualities, leadership is an important trait that allows one to reach out to others through communication. In fact, according to Jerome Taillard, professor at Babson College in Massachusetts, “leadership listens, inspires, motivates, and gives a direction, a common goal to aspire to,” which emphasizes the importance of these traits. This allows connections between each team member, and in this case, Ryan can rally together his own district as well as delegates from other districts by being a great leader. However, he was not born with the impeccable skills of an inspirational leader. He states that “[his] first year of Youth and Government, I used to be one of the shy legislative delegates. But through this program I was able to boost my own confidence and leadership and I hope to instill these same principles in those that I lead.” The YG program has many different officer positions available, and the Lieutenant Governor usually has the responsibility of being the Chair for the Senate. Because of this important duty, the person carrying this out must display exceptional levels of leadership. Ryan Lee displays the qualities of what the Youth and Government program intends to imprint on its participants.

Sources:

College, B. (n.d.). Faculty profiles. Faculty Profiles | Babson College.
https://www.babson.edu/about/our-leaders-and-scholars/faculty-and-academicdivisions/faculty-profiles/jerome-taillard.php

– Interview with Lt. Governor Ryan Lee