(Langdon, NH/February 2, 2009)  Fall Mountain Regional High School’s YMCA Youth & Government program recently attended the Regional Caucus with peers from Keene High School and ConVal High School. A total of 46 students elected their district candidate for Governor as well as their regional representatives to the Senate and other positions within the upcoming Model Legislature—lobbyists, chaplain, Clerk of the Supreme Court, press corps, and more. 

Several Fall Mountain participants were elected to leadership positions during the Regional Caucus. For the second straight year, Will Carmody was elected as the region’s candidate for Governor. Ian Zimmerman will vie for the position of Speaker of the House. Nathaniel Locke was elected to the Governor’s Council while Wes Cubberly won a Senate seat. Tia Lambert will Chair the House committee on Judiciary while Mackenzie Klema will Co-Chair the House committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Recreation. Eva Hagan will serve as a lobbyist. 

The YMCA Youth & Government program, which involves over 300 students from high schools across the State, starts early in each school year and runs through the spring when a Model Legislative Session is held over two days at the New Hampshire State Capitol. The two-day event is the culmination of months of research and writing of bills, regional caucuses, and a state-wide election for Governor and other key leadership positions.  

The local Youth & Government program is led by FMRHS social studies teacher MaryTherese Lester, FMRHS guidance counselor Trina Carmody, and Meeting Waters YMCA’s Program Director Susan Fortier. While the New Hampshire program of YMCA Youth & Government is one of the oldest in the nation—currently in its 60^th year—Fall Mountain Regional High School has been participating for just the past four years. Fall Mountain’s program is for the second straight year the largest delegation in the State with 27 students participating. The purpose of the YMCA Youth & Government Program nationwide is to prepare participants for moral and political citizenship in local, state, and national government roles. YMCA Youth and Government provides guidance, training and an experience in the American democratic process through the form of state government. The state-wide YMCA Youth & Government is coordinated by the Greater Manchester Family YMCA on behalf of the NH-VT Alliance of YMCAs. 

 More information about YMCA Youth & Government and other Meeting Waters YMCA programs is available at www.meetingwatersymca.org or by calling 802-463-4769.