Boys Nation

By James Wolfe

James Harvard, a Council member at Hanover High, attended the American Legion Boys Nation program in Washington, D.C. this summer. We interviewed him about his experiences.

Boys State, a state government simulation for high school students, is the first step toward Boys Nation, a simulation of the U.S. Senate.

“Each American Legion post can sponsor as many boys as they want to go to Boys State,” explained James. “Sometimes you apply for it, but you can just ask and they’ll send you.”

James asked the American Legion post to be included in the program, and they decided to send him. There are requirements to participate in Boys State: you must have at least a 3.0 GPA, you need to be entering senior year in high school, and you need to be an American citizen or legal resident. There is also a Girls State with the same requirements.

“Once you’re at Boys State, you spend a week doing state government things,” James explained. Then the counselors elect two people to go to Boys Nation.”  He was mayor of his fictitious town, and he was in charge of monitoring debates (a “parliamentarian”), so he was well qualified for the position. He did a thirty-minute interview at the end of Boys State week with a twelve-person panel.

“The next day, I found out that I was going to represent New Hampshire at Boys Nation in D.C.,” he said.

There are two representatives from each state; the other one from New Hampshire was Timothy Stackhouse, from Exeter.

“The first day, we got there and I socialized with some of the smartest people that I’ve met in my life,” James recalled. “Some Boys States select two participants from 2,000 people at Boys State, so these were the cream of the crop.”

The participants used the next few days to engage in mock-federal government activities, like bringing and debating motions to the Senate and meeting in committees. They also elected a president.

“We did basically all the things that the federal government does,” said James, whose favorite day was called Capitol Hill Day. The boys got to move freely around the Capitol and meet with their senators. They also met the President of the United States in the East Room of the White House. “We were all on a bleacher-type thing,” said James. “The president came in and talked for about fifteen minutes, and then shook all of our hands. That was probably the highlight of the whole week for me.”

James told us that to attend the program, students already had to have a firm grasp of federal government procedures. They spent their time learning about politics and people, how to debate and make compromises, and interact with other smart people.

“I’m probably going to write my college application essay on my experiences”, he said. “It was one of the most valuable experiences of my academic career or life. It was definitely the most important thing I did this summer.”

James expects to be able to apply what he has learned to his life at Hanover High or on Council: “Conflict resolution was something I learned. When I had an idea and was sharing it, I wanted it to come out of the group just as I had it. But I learned a lot about compromise both at Boys State and Boys Nation.”

He also told us how to get involved in the program: by getting in contact with American Legion Post 22, in Lebanon, NH. If you want to go to Boys State, they’ll pay to send you there. The program is excellent for someone who is interested in law or politics, and it’s a good way to get involved and meet new people with the same interests.

22, in Lebanon, NH. If you want to go to Boys State, they’ll pay to send you there. The program is excellent for someone who is interested in law or politics, and it’s a good way to get involved and meet new people with interests similar to your own.