Girls State is a week-long program that invites young women across Pennsylvania to learn more about citizenship and government. Attendees learn to work together as self-governing citizens and understand how to participate in their state’s government to prepare for their future roles as responsible citizens. Although the program focused mainly on state government, the curriculum touched on federal and local facets of government as well.
Katherine heard about this opportunity through her mother and was sponsored through her local American Legion chapter in Carnegie.
“My mother is a member of the American Legion Auxiliary – which she joined after six years in the Air Force – and she found the Girls State program there,” Katherine said.
Only 300 girls from Pennsylvania are invited into the Girls State program every year. The program only accepts young women with strong academic achievements and leadership skills.
“All of the girls there were very qualified students with amazing achievements,” explained Katherine. “You needed a certain level of academic success to be accepted into the program. It was great connecting with those girls and their diverse backgrounds.”
The program is extremely intense, making use of every minute of the day. Participants would wake up at 5:30 am and have scheduled activities, lectures and presentations until 11 pm.
“We split into groups and developed mock cities. Each dorm floor had its own city where we would elect mayors and other government officials and tend to the business of running the city,” Katherine said.
The program also included guest speakers.
“I was surprised by some of the speakers and what they had to say. They would talk about their government jobs and their duties and what they had to do on a day-to-day basis – things that you wouldn't necessarily associate with a job such as theirs,” said Katherine. “One woman detailed the number of women's equality issues she deals with and that was something that really surprised me.”
Girls State was also a great opportunity to meet girls with different experiences and backgrounds. Katherine said she enjoyed comparing cities and finding common interests with the girls she met.
“My favorite part was meeting new people from all around the state like Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Erie,” said Katherine. “We would compare where we live and got to see how the areas differed in how they were run and the social climate.”
Looking forward, Katherine said a career in government is not in her future, but plans to apply the skills she learned in order to become a more informed citizen.
“I really don't have an interest in working for the government as a career, but it's definitely something that is of interest to me. I wanted to learn more about how government works. I think it's important and something everyone should know about,” explained Katherine.
“I'm really interested in business and I feel that you need to have some sort of legal knowledge to properly run a business and to be up on state regulations,” Katherine added.
Overall, Katherine found Girls State to be an excellent experience for girls who are interested in government and law. Although the program did not apply to her career goals, she feels government is relevant to everyone.
“I think it's more beneficial for someone who may be into law and government, but I still think they taught a lot of things that every citizen should know. I've encouraged some friends to think about going.” Katherine said.
