Begun in New York in 1936, the Youth and Government program was the brainchild of Clement Duran, the Boy's Work Secretary of the Albany YMCA. He felt that his country was in need of better educated politicans who had real character and integrity, and he believed the way of providing such politicians was to form programs for young people that developed these character traits. His idea of model youth legislatures continues to be the guiding idea in today's Youth and Government programs, and the motto for his program, "Democracy Must Be Learned by Each Generation", is the motto for all Youth and Government programs in the United States.
Today, over 40 states have Youth and Government programs: most of these programs consist of a model legislature composed of high school students who write legislation, and gather for a week to debate their proposed laws in their actual state capitol building. Nationwide studies show that Youth and Government alumni are not necessarily more likely to become politicians as they reach adulthood, but they are considerably more likely to become active in local political issues as concerned citizens.
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