Senior spends summer making difference in politics

In July ninety-eight teenage boys went to Boys Nation to learn about how the government is ran. Central student, Choteau Kammel, spent part of his summer in a program that works to challenge and inform teenage boys about the government and how the government works. Not only did he participate in this program, Boys Nation, he was also elected the vice president.

Boys Nation is a program that teaches boys about how the government is run. Ninety-eight students, two from each state except Hawaii, are chosen to partake in this program. These ninety-eight students are spilt into two parties, Nationalists and Federalists. The main goal is to pass as many pieces of legislation in a timely manner while still allowing any opinions to be discussed. Each participant needs to write two pieces of legislature, a bill and a resolution.

During this week they also elect a president, vice president, speaker, and cabinet. In order to fill one of these roles, first all of the people have to give a short stump speech on why they feel they should get the position to their party. Each party will then induvially vote for who they want to represent their party. Once each party has their candidate, the candidates have a 13 question debate. After the debate concludes a vote held to see who the recieves the position.

Last year, Choteau Kammel was running as vice president. However, for the first time in the history of Boys Nation, his opponent withdrew his name from the election before the official election started. That was the first time someone has ever been unanimously voted into a position. Choteau Kammel said, “It was extremely humbling. The fact that any seventeen year old boy would stand in front of his peer and admit any fault is amazing. That is the kind of person I want to be.”

As Vice President Choteau Kammel had many responsibilities. He was in charge of the senate and had to make sure all of the meetings ran smoothly. He was in charge of calling on different people in the senate to talk and make sure to move in a quick manner while still addressing everything the amount it needed to be addressed. Choteau Kammel said, “We broke the record for the most amount of legislature addressed. The previous record had been standing for 70 years.”

There are many life skills and knowledge that can be gained during this event. Not only are the participants able to learn and experience how to the government is run, but they also has the chance to talk to other teens that had the same interests as them. This was a great opportunity for all of the students who got to participate. Choteau Kammel said, “It helped me to respect the political process. It showed me even though the process does not always work, it can work. It also put some of my fears to rest by showing me that the upcoming generation is much more open-minded.”