{"id":49934,"date":"2026-10-22T11:59:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T16:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/?p=49934"},"modified":"2026-10-22T11:59:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T16:59:10","slug":"high-school-students-head-to-springfield-to-try-their-hands-at-being-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/local-news\/49934-high-school-students-head-to-springfield-to-try-their-hands-at-being-lawmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"High School Students Head to Springfield to Try their Hands at Being Lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pdfprnt-buttons pdfprnt-buttons-post pdfprnt-top-right\"><a href=\"javascript: window.print()\" class=\"pdfprnt-button pdfprnt-button-print\" target=\"_self\" ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/wp-content\/plugins\/pdf-print\/images\/print.png\" alt=\"image_print\" title=\"Print Content\" \/><span class=\"pdfprnt-button-title pdfprnt-button-print-title\">Print<\/span><\/a><\/div><p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>SPRINGFIELD-<\/strong>\u00a0Dozens of high school students from across Central Illinois recently got the chance to find out what it\u2019s like to be a legislator, courtesy of State Senator Steve McClure\u2019s (R-Springfield) Youth Advisory Council program.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s always impressive how engaged these students are and how much thought and effort they put into the activities,\u201d said Senator McClure. \u201cI hope we\u2019ve given them insight into how the legislative process really works.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Senator McClure\u2019s Youth Advisory Council brought 65 high school students, from 16 different schools across the 54<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0Senate District, to the University of Illinois campus in Springfield. Students heard from Senator McClure, Senator Sally Turner, Illinois Supreme Court Justice Lisa Holder White, and WAND News Reporter Mike Miletich.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI just think it\u2019s so cool, these are people that are actively working in politics, we got to see a Supreme Court Justice, that\u2019s incredible, and we get to see these real professionals in what they do, and they take the time to talk to us, I just think that\u2019s amazing,\u201d said Williamsville High School student Michelle Albers.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDefinitely to be more open-minded about just having political views, stances, and opinions, and to strengthen my communication skills with other people,\u201d said Decatur Eisenhower High School student Destiney Sigmon on what she believes the event has offered to her.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI think it\u2019s pretty awesome, I\u2019m learning a lot,\u201d added St. Anthony High School student Lyndi Smith. \u201cI want to be a criminal defense attorney, so it\u2019s good to be learning more about criminal law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the afternoon, the students held a mock committee hearing where they took on the roles of legislators, concerned citizens, lobbyists, and even the governor. They debated the merits of legislation focused on the ongoing Chicago Bears stadium negotiations, proposed possible amendments, and then voted on the legislation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI think it\u2019s great, I\u2019m having a great time, it\u2019s really fun,\u201d said PORTA High School student Maddie Appledorn. \u201cI think a lot of the people are really good at what they\u2019re arguing for, what they\u2019re not arguing for, and the stories that they\u2019re coming up with.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI think it\u2019s really good, I think it\u2019s really helping students get a view into our state government and everything that it does,\u201d said North Mac High School student Mazi Jenkins. \u201cI just really hope it helps me to be confident when talking to people about differences in our views and how to express those in a respectful way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Senator McClure\u2019s Youth Advisory Council is open to all high schools in the 54<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0Senate District. If you know of a student who may be interested in taking part next year, they are encouraged to talk to their principal or superintendent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SPRINGFIELD-\u00a0Dozens of high school students from across Central Illinois recently got the chance to find out what it\u2019s like to be a legislator, courtesy of State Senator Steve McClure\u2019s (R-Springfield) [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2963,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>High School Students Head to Springfield to Try their Hands at Being Lawmakers - 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