To help teenagers become responsible citizens and future leaders of our nation.

To create an environment in which students can increase their political awareness and understanding while learning the meaning of social action through an actual hands-on experience in government.

“Democracy must be learned by each generation in order for it to survive.”

Texas Youth and Government program is supervised by the State Youth and Government Director. The State Director provides statewide leadership for the program by guiding the state in program enhancement and structure and collaborating with regional leaders from all the participating YMCAs. These regional directors provide the local program leaders and are the host of the regional conferences. Regional directors work under the direction of local YMCA’s and the State Director is under the direction of the YMCA of Austin.

Regional (District Conferences)

Every year, each regional director hosts a District Conference in the month of November or December. Students are required to participate in District Conference in order to attend the State Conference. Qualifying for State is contingent on the participants’ full-day presence, as well as their ranking, at District Conference to determine placement and qualification for State Conference.

State Conference

• The High School State Conference occurs Thursday through Sunday in February each year. Students and advisors who qualify for State Conference must meet conference registration deadlines. Participants must attend the State Conference in its entirety. If a participant does not attend the full program for State Conference, Regional and State leadership reserve the right to restrict the future participation of an attendee at future State Conference meetings.
• Groups must maintain 1-10 adult-to-student ratio for the State Conference. Club advisors must submit room lists to the State Office by the required deadline. Rooming cannot change after submission. Please review our refunds and cancellations policies for information regarding cancellations.
• Middle School

The Middle School State Conference occurs Friday-Sunday in March.

• Students and advisors who qualify for State Conference must meet conference registration deadlines. Participants must attend the State Conference in its entirety. If a participant does not attend the full program for State Conference, Regional and State leadership reserve the right to restrict the future participation of an attendee at future State Conference meetings.
• Groups must maintain 1-10 adult-to-student ratio for the State Conference. Club advisors must submit room lists to the State Office by the required deadline. Rooming cannot change after submission. Please review our refunds and cancellations policies for information regarding cancellations.

Qualification for the National Conference is determined by the state program leadership. Students may only qualify to attend Nationals if they have participate in the full program of District Conference and State Conference.

• Conference on National Affairs
• Changemakers
• Youth Governors Conference
• National Judicial Conference

• Every program participant–including all teens, adults and YMCA staff—are required to complete the annual program registration in its entirety each year. All student participants—regardless of age—are required to have the Parent or Guardian Release Form completed.
• Release forms must be completed prior to the student’s engagement in any program activities or conferences.
• Participants funnel into our program through club participation and fall preparation leading into regional District Conferences statewide. Participants attend the conference in their designated regions. See who we are page to learn more about your region.
• Participation Areas (Program Sections)
  • Legislative (high school and middle school)
  • State Affairs (high school and middle school)
  • Trial Court (high school only)
  • Appeals Court (high school only)
  • Media (high school only)
  • Executive Cabinet/Lobbyist
  • Candidates

• Requests will be evaluated by YMCA Staff.
• Refunds will not be applied to future programming.
• Student program fees are non-refundable for individuals, schools, and organizations. Program fees support the work our professional team does year-round, along with creating and developing all program materials and curricula. Any child that engages in our clubs, accesses our program materials, and participates in our program will be subject to an annual program fee.
• If financial assistance has been awarded to a student after the payment has been processed, refund requests will not be granted.
• If registration fees have been paid via a school check, refunds will ONLY be issued back to the school and distributed to participants from there.
• If payment has not yet been received, the refund policy will be implemented as outlined here in order to determine the fee amount owed to the State Office. Additionally, an updated invoice will be provided.
• Those with extenuating circumstances (e.g., doctor’s note, documented COVID-19 exposure, positive COVID-19 test, or death in the family) can email [email protected] to explain their request for a refund. Please note that we will still keep costs to cover incurred fees. Even in extenuating circumstances, a full refund will not be given. These requests will be handled on a case-by-case basis by calculating incurred costs.
• If any additional room cost has been added to an invoice due to a private advisor or smaller student rooms, refunds will not be granted if the room is combined or dropped past the payment deadline.
• Refunds are only processed following the conclusion of a conference.
• Refunds for both individuals and schools may take up to 30 days to process.
• If more than 30 days have passed since the conclusion of the conference, no refunds will be granted.

Cancellation and Notification Timeline

• This refund policy will be in effect for student, school, YMCAs, and/or venue cancellations.
• Student program registration fees are 100% non-refundable.
• District Conference cancellations received prior to October 27, 2023, will be eligible for a refund. These refunds are subject to a $20 administrative fee.
• District Conference cancellations received after October 27, 2023, are not eligible for a refund. Any entity that has been granted the ability to pay via invoice will still be subject to a full program fee for cancellations after this October 27 deadline. Entities refusing to pay conference fees for late cancellations will not be eligible to participate in future program registrations until their accounts have been cleared.
• State Conference cancellations received prior to December 18, 2023 for High School State Conference and January 19, 2024 for Middle School State Conference will be eligible for a refund. These refunds are subject to a $40 administrative fee.
• State Conference cancellations received after December 18, 2023 (High School State) // January 19, 2024 (Middle School State) are not eligible for a refund. Any entity that has been granted the ability to pay via invoice will still be subject to a full program fee for cancellations after the December 18, 2023 (High Schools) // January 19, 2024 (Middle Schools) drop deadline. Entities that refuse to pay conference fees for late cancellations will not be eligible for future program registrations till accounts have been cleared.
• All requests for refunds must be submitted via email to the following address: [email protected]. Submitting a refund request does not automatically notify us that you are not attending. If participants fail to notify the State Office via email prior to the conference, the State Office reserves the right to hold all parties accountable to the refund policy. Failure to notify the State Office by email could result in a reduced refund amount. as it stands on the date your refund request is reviewed. This could result in a reduced refund amount.

Cancellation

• If an in-person conference is cancelled by the YMCA or program venue due to weather, pandemic, low registration numbers, or any other unforeseen circumstances, the YMCA will call advisors to receive feedback and determine the best course of action, including either creating a virtual program over the same dates, or if space and logistics allow, joining another in-person conference in the future.
• The YMCA will make every effort to provide any changes to programming as soon as possible. If a change to programming is required, the YMCA will (1) review the refund policy as stated above, (2) work with vendors to reduce incurred costs to the organization, and (3) make every effort to maximize the amount possible to be refunded. The time it takes to make the determination may result in a short delay for processing refunds.
• IF THE YMCA MOVES THE ENTIRE CONFERENCE TO A VIRTUAL PROGRAM, ALL STUDENTS WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE REGISTERED FOR THE VIRTUAL PROGRAM. Any drops from the virtual program must be submitted within the timeline given in the announcement.

Invoice Policy

• Invoice payments must be received prior to event participation. If your campus requires additional time to process invoices, the campus is required to request one early. No campus will be allowed to attend District or State Conferences if payment has not been received prior to either District or State Conferences. Payment for State Conference must be received prior to December 31, 2023.

• Hotel Address – 3001 Kalahari Blvd. Round Rock, TX 78665

• Kalahari Resort is 223,000 square feet of hotel rooms, conference space, restaurant, and water park. For more information or general questions about the resort, click here.
• It is a requirement for all participating groups to stay on site at all times for the duration of the conference. Hotel stay is part of the State Conference experience for all attendees. Due to insurance requirements, participation in the State Conference is contingent upon participation in full program schedule. Groups are not allowed to use their own transportation once they check-in.
• A 1:10 adult-to-student ratio must be maintained at all times during the State Conference.
• Conference participants will only be allowed access to the water park during specific times over the course of the conference weekend. YMCA staff and program advisors will provide supervision during this time. See conference schedule for details (release prior to District Conferences annually).
• Free Wifi will be accessible to conference participants.

Resort & Waterpark Safety Procedures

Kalahari Resort certifies and train their lifeguards through the American Red Cross. In totality Kalahari employs approximately 250 certified lifeguards.

• Among the indoor and outdoor parks, Kalahari has approximately 50-60 lifeguards on stand per shift.
• Kalahari also employs their own certified EMTs and Licensed Paramedics, typically 2 per day. These emergency personnel serve as first responders to the entire resort.
• On-site EMTs and paramedics are under the medical direction of Williamson County Medical Director.
• Round Rock Fire State 6 is one block away from the hotel. Location .9 miles away; 4 minutes’ drive time due to intersections. 2919 Joe Dimaggio Blvd, Round Rock, TX 78665
• Parents are welcome to attend the State Conference to observe their child. A hotel block will be shared with parents 60 day prior to the event date. Parents must cover the cost of their own hotel stay.
• Regardless of a parent attendance at State Conference, all students must room with their group during conference weekend. Parents are not allowed to “check out” their child from conference events for personal excursions.
• Parents or Relatives may not enter into any teen or state participant hotel room.
• To ensure the safety of every participant, we are requiring all adults associated with the conference to complete a Raptor Sex Offender Check. This includes any and all adults or parents staying overnight or stopping by to observe the conference.

• Hotel Address: 9721 Arboretum Blvd., Austin, TX 78759.

• Renaissance Austin Hotel accommodations include 239 King Bedrooms / 253 Double Queen Rooms.
• Free Wifi will be accessible to all conference participants with the creation of a free Marriott Bonvoy account.
• *see conference schedule for details (release prior to District Conferences annually)
• All groups are required to stay on site for conference participation. Hotel stay is part of the State Conference experience for all attendees. Due to insurance requirements, participation in the State Conference is contingent upon participation in full program schedule. Groups are not allowed to use their own transportation once they check-in.
• A 1:10 adult-to-student ratio must be maintained at all times during the State Conference.
• To ensure the safety of every participant, we are requiring all adults visiting or associated with the conference to complete a Raptor Sex Offender Check. This includes any and all adults or parents staying overnight or stopping by to observe the conference.
• Parents are welcome to attend the State Conference to observe their child. A hotel block will be shared with parents 60 day prior to the event date. Parents must cover the cost of their own hotel stay. Regardless of a parent attendance at State Conference, all students must room with their group during conference weekend.
• Parents are not allowed to “check out” their child from conference events for personal excursions.
• Parents or Relatives may not enter into any teen or state participant hotel room.