St. Patrick students attend annual Mississippi Youth Legislature

St. Patrick Catholic High School students participated in Mississippi Youth Legislature in Jackson, Mississippi, from November 11-15.  The students were accompanied by St. Patrick teachers Mr. Peter Prindiville and Mr. Leo Mironovich.  St. Patrick traveled to and from the event with fellow Biloxi Diocesan school, Resurrection High School.  Together the schools brought a total of thirty-eight students to Jackson for Youth Legislature.

Youth Legislature is a youth program organized through Mississippi YMCA Youth and Government.  Every fall, students ninth through twelfth grade throughout the state of Mississippi travel to Jackson in order to participate in a mock legislature.  Seventh through ninth grade students can travel to Jackson to participate in a similar program, Junior Youth Assembly, in the spring.  In these programs, students in groups of two or three spend weeks before the program to think of something they want to become a state law, and then as a group they form their idea into a bill.  Students are then sent to Jackson as a Senator in the Senate or as a Representative in the House where they present their bill to other students from around the state and try to get their bill passed through both committees and chambers until it reaches the desk of the Youth Governor where he or she can either veto the bill or sign the bill into law.

This year St. Patrick students Lillie Guida, Hannah Gautier, and Chloe wrote Senate Bill 41 which was signed into law by Youth Governor Benjamin Payne.  Their bill was an act to establish a state lottery to fund public education in the state of Mississippi.  All three served as Committee Chairs.  Lillie Guida and Hannah Gautier won Outstanding Committee Chairs.

Five St. Patrick seniors served as officers this year.  Brooke Gibson served as Speaker Pro Tempore.  Desirée Goodfellow served as Assistant House Reading Clerk.  Caroline Rinker served as Secretary of the Senate and Mary Rebecca served as Assistant Secretary of the Senate.  As the seniors said goodbye to Youth Legislature, a group of St. Patrick sophomores were elected as officers for Junior Youth Assembly and Youth Legislature.  Hannah Gautier was elected as President Pro-Tempore.  Chloe Rizk was elected as Speaker Pro-Tempore.

St. Patrick will head to Jackson again on April 21, 2016 for Junior Youth Assembly.  Students seventh through ninth graders are welcome on the trip.  For more information, please contact Mr. Prindiville.

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Story by Desirée Goodfellow