Junior State of America
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The Junior State of America (aka Junior Statesmen of America) (“JSA”) is an American non-partisan student-run youth organization. The purpose of the JSA is to help high school students acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to be effective leaders, statesmen, and voters. The JSA is sponsored by the Junior Statesmen Foundation (“JSF”), which also assists in the operation of the JSA Summer Schools.
Overview
The JSA is the largest student-run organization in the United States. Students organize every aspect of the organization, from the local chapter level to the state and national administration level. The members elect leaders from their ranks to organize JSA conventions, conferences, and political awareness events.JSA is both a local and a national organization, organized by "states". At the high school chapter level, chapter presidents organize local activities and meetings. On the regional level, "Mayors" and "Vice-Mayors" organize one-day regional conferences and coordinate chapter communication. On the state level, "Governors" and "Lieutenant Governors" organize overnight conventions, and on the national level, Governors are in constant communication planning event themes, setting policy, and steering the direction of the organization.
The JSA program includes debates, “thought talks”, problem solving, and a variety of simulations designed to provide members with an informed viewpoint and the ability to analyse important issues. JSA provides an opportunity to meet other students from outside their home communities who share similar interests.
In addition to sponsoring the JSA, the JSF sponsors 3- and 4-week "Summer School" sessions for JSA members. These are held at Yale, Princeton, Northwestern, Stanford, and Georgetown and week-long symposium on state and local politics in several states. The revenue from these programs help fund the school-year JSA program.
History
The JSA was founded in 1934 by Professor E.A. Rogers (affectionately referred to as "Prof" by JSA enthusiasts) at the Montezuma Mountain School in Los Gatos, California, as an experiment in self-government. Students at the Montezuma Mountain School set up their own three-branch government, complete with a student court, police force, executive officer, and legislative branch. The students would draft, pass, and enforce their own rules.The JSA has had liaisons with other similar organizations outside of the United States. For example, throughout the 1980s the Pacific-Northwest State developed close ties with the British Columbia Youth Parliament (BCYP). "Ambassadors" were invited from the Pacific-Northwest State to attend the December BCYP legislative session in Victoria, British Columbia, as well a number of BCYP sponsored events, including the "Vernon Conference" held in 1985, a project to celebrate the U.N. International Year of the Youth, involving the BCYP, the TUXIS Parliament of Alberta, and the JSA. In turn, the BCYP would send delegates to attend Pacific-Northwest Spring and Fall State. The Southern California state also added the American School in Honduras as a chapter in 2006 and the school's chapter attended the annual Congress convention.
Since its inception in 1934, more than 300,000 student members have participated in the JSA.
Structure
For practical purposes, the JSA is broken down into nine (9) different top-level branches. Most of these top-level branches are called States, others are Territories, and more are Regions. States are the most advanced and contain the most members, then territories, and then regions. When a region contains a pre-specified number of chapters and members, it may petition the Council of Governors (composed of the Governors from all States) to become a territory. When a territory attains a certain number of members and chapters, it may petition the Council of Governors for statehood.The current top-level branches of JSA are:
- Northeast State
- Mid-Atlantic State
- Southeast Region
- Midwest Territory
- Ohio River Valley
- Texas State
- Pacific-Northwest State
- Northern California State
- Southern California State
The sponsoring JSF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with an adult board of trustees and paid staff. The JSA receives administrative and programming support from the JSF.
JSA events
Fall and spring state conventions
Fall State and Spring State are similar in that they consist solely of debates, thought talks, and special activities, including a dance. At Spring State, the JSA members in attendance elect the JSA leaders for the upcoming year.Winter Congress convention
Winter Congress is structured more like an actual Congress: students are divided into Senate and House of Representative committees. Each student then goes to their assigned house and passes or rejects bills, depending on how well the debaters perform and what the students support. The bills that pass both houses of the Congress may then be introduced into a "full session" of Congress if a Senator or Representative chooses to sponsor the bill. At certain Congress conventions, students join political parties during Winter Congress which have platforms on all of the bills up for debate. Candidate declarations are also held during Winter State, beginning the election season.Regional conferences
There are also smaller, regional conferences and mini-conferences ("minicons") which occur on a local level. Regionals are run by the Mayors and Vice-Mayors of Regions along with the Regional Cabinet members that they appoint. Minicons are usually hosted by chapters at individual schools.Elected positions & cabinet
As a student-run organization, the JSA leadership consists of students elected to the various JSA offices. Elections occur each year at the Spring State convention and are major events. Races are regulated by a Fair Elections Committee (FEC) that sets spending limits and regulates campaigning.Once elected, elected officials may appoint a "Cabinet" to help run the organization. Prospective cabinet members often need to complete an application to be considered for a position. In some states cabinet members need to be approved by the Senate or State Assembly.
State elected officials
The State elected officials lead the top-level branches of JSA.Governor
The position of governor is the highest and most important position in the JSA. The governor has the job of appointing a state cabinet that gets much specialized work done at the JSA state level. Each state governor represents his or her Junior State on the national Council of Governors (CoG), which meets three times per year.Lieutenant Governor
The Lieutenant Governor is second-in-command to the Governor. He or she also runs the Fair Elections Committee (FEC). In some states, the Lieutenant Governor is also in charge of the Senate or State Assembly.Speaker
The position of speaker exists only in the states of Northern California, Southern California, and Texas. The Speaker presides over the State Assembly. In other states, that job defaults to the Lieutenant Governor who, in some states, appoints a President Pro-Tempore from the Assembly Representatives to jointly run the body.Regional elected officials
Every top-level JSA branch is broken down into smaller areas, called "Regions". Every Region has a Mayor and a Vice-Mayor. Some Regions also have Senators.Mayor
The Mayor leads the region as the Governor leads the state. He or she is responsible for the well-being of his or her region, as well as planning and executing the one-day regional conferences.Vice Mayor
This officer assists the Mayor, and takes his or her place in case of absence or resignation. A primary role of the Vice Mayor is to keep up on the status of all chapters within the region, and make sure the Chapter Presidents have everything they need to succeed.Senator
Most of the regions each elect a certain number of senators, depending on the state. These work under their regional mayors as well as the state Lt. Governor and represent their regions on the state level. Once again, not all regions do this. In some states each senator does a Personal Outreach Project, or a POP, which the senator has their project to assist the average JSA member become more involved.Summer events
After the school year is over, JSA chapter members can participate in numerous student-run events over the summer. The biggest events, which are held at prestigious universities, are the JSA Summer Schools. The Summer Schools, conducted by the JSF, offer students an opportunity to study local, state, or national government at an advanced level. These programs prepare young leaders for active participation in public affairs.These programs, at which students take a full semester each of two courses over four weeks, for which they can receive high school credit (with the exception of the Georgetown programs), take place at Stanford, Georgetown, Princeton, Yale, and Northwestern. Past speakers have included Mike McCurry, Andy Card, Lee Hamilton, Norman Mineta, Joe Trippi, Dennis Kucinich, John Kerry, Harry Reid, Barack Obama, George H.W. Bush, and Condoleezza Rice.
Summer symposiums are also held in different regions, such as the summer school symposium of Ohio State University and the University of Southern California. These events are one- to two-weeks long and venture into politics, world studies, history, and discussions of current events.
For more information on these events and more, visit the national website, [www.jsa.org]
External links
- [The JSA Official Website]
- [Northgate High School JSA Chapter]
- [Berkeley High School JSA Chapter]
- [Wellesley High School JSA Chapter (Wellesley, MA)]
- [Miamisburg High School JSA Chapter]
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