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High School students participate in Lorenzo de Zavala youth program

June 20, 2011

At the 2011 Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative Session June 19-26 at CSU, high-achieving Latino high school students will debate issues, experience the complex world of goverment, and legislate action.

Mock legislature and judiciary

The Colorado Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative Session, sponsored by CSU and held on the Fort Collins campus, is a weeklong conference where students engage in a mock legislative process and judicial hearings that examine the assets of the Latino community and its trajectory.

The event gives high school sophomores and juniors a better understanding of community equity building and a chance to improve their skills in public speaking, organizational management, and constituency building.

Activities

The weeklong session features activities that include:

• A general convention
• Speeches
• Legislative sessions
• Supreme Court trials
• Committee hearings

Students will campaign for positions such as governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house, senator, attorney, or one of nine Supreme Court justice positions. Candidates will make speeches before the delegation and work to build their constituencies.

Proposal presentations

Each student must develop proposals which harness the talents and abilities of their community. Students present and debate the merits of their proposals before their peers and strive to have their ideas passed into law.

Colorado State University and the National Hispanic Institute have co-hosted this event since 1990. To qualify, students must have a 3.2 grade-point average or above and must be enrolled in a college-bound high school curriculum.

Students interested in participating in the 2012 conference can contact Jonathan Goode in the Office of Admissions at (970) 491-6454.