In the beginning of every year, students grades seven through 12 from all over the state gather in Wisconsin’s capitol to participate in a three-day mock congress. These sessions have been going on since 1957, and the next session will be Youth In Government’s 60th year since it’s Wisconsin chapter was created.

Youth In Government, also known as YIG, is separated into three different branches. According to Jolene L, the head adviser of the Fox Cities Delegation, “Delegates (students) can choose to participate in 3 different program areas.” The Press Corps is about interviewing, researching, and compiling the learned information into articles for their newsletter, as well as taking pictures and video and running social media accounts. The Supreme Court has delegates that are “given a court case where they have to create a brief and argue the legality of the judgment to see if they can get the decision of the court overturned. As part of their brief, there are a number of legal questions they need to address.”  Delegates in the Legislative branch create and write “their own bills that they debate and try to get passed into two houses with the hope of having the Governor sign it into law.”

This year’s Governor is Appleton North’s very own, Nora Ptacek. At the local level, Ptacek has served as delegation leader two years in a row and has been the leader of the legislative branch. At the State level, she has been the chair of the red assembly and the lieutenant governor. Ptacek says “I am unconditionally grateful and humbled to have served in these positions and know that they have truly impacted me as a person.” If you’re interested in joining YIG, come to the first meeting on October fourth at the downtown Appleton YMCA.