Many people at OHS are a part of different clubs and extracurricular activities, whether that be related to sports, music or government. One example of this would be Youth and Government, which is a student-led government system and for the most part, a newly introduced extracurricular activity at OHS.
“So it’s like a student-led simulation of state government and so you model the legislative process in a state legislature,” history teacher Kara Beck said, “and then there’s also the judicial branch, which we did not do this year, and a media component, which we also did not do this year.”
However, she isn’t the only advisor for Youth and Government at OHS.
“I didn’t come in with the dream to be a Y.A.G advisor, because I had never heard of it before, but Mr. Shinabargar had done it as a student and then sponsored it as a teacher at his old high school,” Beck said. “…It sounded really cool, so I was like, yes, I will definitely help you with that.”
Not only do some teachers, such as Beck, think that Y.A.G. offers students a unique opportunity, but students also think that Y.A.G. is a great experience and they recommend it to other students.
“It’s a lot of fun, please join,” Quinn Dillon (11) said. “We all kind of get really close, and it’s a really cool experience that everyone should get to enjoy if they’re interested in it.”
Dillon (11) has been apart of Y.A.G. for two years and is interested in pursuing a career in government in the future. However, she is already working toward becoming a strong political leader in Y.A.G by running for the position of Secretary of State.
“…I was inspired to run because I was friends with the person who won secretary of state the year before, and then Owen Mellinger (12) had run for Speaker of the House and won, and so everybody was kind of urging me to run because I was the only one in our delegation who was eligible to do so,” Dillon said. “I was really interested in it and it looked like a lot of fun, so I decided to just run. Then I ended up running unopposed, so I won the position and everybody seemed to like me…”
Since Dillon has been appointed as the Secretary of State, she has begun to plan what steps she wants to take in order to create a change within this form of student-led government.
“As Secretary of State, I want to work together with the Governor since her mission was to make it so that everybody kind of talks about Youth and Government throughout the year,” Dillon said. “Now together, we decided that we want to talk more about how to run voter advocacy so that we don’t have something like this year where everyone ran unopposed.”
Even though this year may have been unique in its own ways, other years have also been characterized by certain people and experiences. Simeral has been a part of Y.A.G. since it began at OHS her sophomore year and has been able to see the changes that Y.A.G. has gone through.
“We have definitely grown as a group throughout the time that I have been a part of it, and I think thats super great,” Simeral said. “We are like a huge family with just smaller groups within it, and I wish this wasn’t my last year so I could see how it continues to grow.”
Since Simeral, along with two other original members, won’t be around OHS after they graduate to see the growth that Y.A.G may experience, she hopes that other people continue their legacy.
“I definitely recommend Y.A.G. to anyone who is considering it. I would say it has changed my high school experience for the better,” Simeral said, “and for anyone who wants to pursue something similar in the future, or not, it’s a great opportunity, and I loved being apart of the ‘Yagsters.’”
