Program Welcomes New Delegations

Written By: Gina Denny and Julia Lingenfelter

Youth and Government is constantly growing with more members joining each year. There are currently over 700 students involved in this year’s Model convention.  While this rise in numbers can be due to recruitment from individual clubs, the growth is also attributed to the addition of new delegations.

This year, the program welcomes four new delegations; Erie YMCA, Garnet Valley High School, Plymouth Whitemarsh High School, and the YMCA of Indiana County.  One of the new delegations, Erie, was reintroduced by Chris Gotsch, an advisor of the delegation. He explained, “I am an alumni of the program, and when I moved back to the area I wanted to get the program started again.” The club was pitched to students already involved in leadership skill classes so they would have an idea of what to expect and how to deal with it. This year, they are focusing on getting used to the program, but hope to have more student leaders in the future.

The encouraging growth of YAG in recent years is very promising for the club. New members are discovering what sparks their interest and old members are reigniting the flame that drives them. All in all, the integration of new delegations into YAG has proven to be successful.