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Meyer encourages participation in page program

High school students can see government in action

High school students who wish to provide valuable assistance to state legislators have the opportunity to apply to become an Iowa Legislative Page during the 2020 session.

State Rep. Ann Meyer, R-Fort Dodge, released information about the Legislative Page program on Tuesday.

“The Legislative Page program is a great way for high school students to get their foot in the door and see their state government in action,” Meyer said. “I hope area students will apply to serve as legislative pages next session as it’s a valuable experience for any young person.”

Every year the Iowa General Assembly employs Iowa high school juniors and seniors from across the state to serve as pages during the legislative session.

Duties of a legislative page include things like operating the chamber switchboard, delivering messages, distributing legislation, assisting committee chairpersons, and sorting amendments.

Meyer said students who are selected for the program will start their day at 8 a.m. inside the state Capitol in Des Moines and end their day at 4:30 p.m.

Students will work from Jan. 13 until the session ends, sometime in April.

Pages are paid for their work. Many schools offer class credit for the time spent in the Legislature.

“They are paid for 40 hours a week,” Meyer said. “If the Legislature goes late, the pages stick around and see the process and the live debates. It’s so interesting for me, I can only imagine a student in a government class seeing it come to life. It’s fascinating.”

Meyer said two students from Fort Dodge served as pages during the 2018 session.

Haley Ledford and Liam Conrad, both St. Edmond Catholic High School students, participated in 2018.

“They were both such good kids,” Meyer said. “I hope we get more students from the area to participate. The pages loved being there every day. It’s very interesting.”

She added, “If a student has any interest in going into any government job, this would be a great learning opportunity. It’s really seeing it come to life instead of sitting in the classroom.”

For information on how to apply, parents and students can visit Legis.Iowa.Gov/careers.

Applications are due by Oct. 4.

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