6-12-17 badger boys state

Badger Boys State commenced its 76^th session on June 10 in Ripon.  The annual week-long program of The American Legion Department of Wisconsin will bring together hundreds of high school seniors from across Wisconsin to create a 51st  state known as Badger Boys State.    “Badger Boys State is a week that changes a lifetime for hundreds of high school seniors every year. It is a remarkable youth leadership program designed to educate students in the duties, privileges, rights, and responsibilities of American citizenship.” said Fred Berns, Badger Boys State Director.   Badger Boys State participants will develop their own party platforms, pass local ordinances and utilize a judicial system to enforce the laws and constitution of the 51st state.  Additionally, citizens choose from a series of schools of instruction, including law, peace officer, leadership, public finance, public speaking, parliamentary procedure, and public persuasion and campaign strategies. Badger Boys State citizens also have an opportunity to participate in a variety of team sports that compete throughout the week, a band and choir, and write for the official newspaper of Badger Boys State, the Badger Bugle Citizen.  Planned highlights of this year’s session include guest speakers, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Ann Walsh Bradley and Charles Wiley of the National Press Corps, among others.  Badger Boy State citizens are selected by local high schools throughout the state based on their qualifications as good students, exhibiting strong leadership skills and in the top third of their class. Previous Badger Boys State graduates are prominent today as leaders and include Governor Scott Walker (1985), Governor Scott McCallum (1967), Congressman Thomas Petri, jazz singer Al Jarreau, actor Daniel J. Travanti (all 3 in 1957), and former Governor Martin Schreiber (1956).