The Cazenovia School District has eight junior high school boys going to this year’s annual New York State Boys’ State, sponsored by the American Legion, June 25 through July 1.
The young men who attend Boys’ State have been nominated, interviewed and selected based on their outstanding qualifications in leadership, character, citizenship and scholarship by a committee comprised of Cazenovia American Legion Post 88 members.
The weeklong event, held at SUNY Morrisville State College, teaches over 1,000 young men from across New York state the mechanics of city, county, and state government in a participatory, fast paced environment designed to develop a working knowledge of the structure of government to impress upon them that their government is just what they make it. The boys will have the chance to choose what elective offices to run for and perform those duties, which include an elected governor, county and city officials, exactly as reflected in New York state government.
Extracurricular activities include presentations by keynote speakers (including U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney) music and sports. Some Marines are also there to teach the boys close order drill, leadership, command presence, public speaking and self-discipline.
At the end of Boy’s State, only two boys from each of the 50 states will be selected to participate in Boys’ Nation later this year.
Some notable Boys’ State alumni include Neil Armstrong, Tom Brokaw, Garth Brooks, Bill Clinton, Mike Huckabee, Samuel Alito, Michael Jordan, Rush Limbaugh, George Pataki, Dick Cheney, Roger Ebert and Jon Bon Jovi, among many others.
