Over 100 Md. high school students learn about politics during visit to Annapolis
Making sense of state politics was the assignment for more than 100 Maryland high school students during a visit to Annapolis Tuesday.
The visit to the State House was a notch above a field trip -- it's where students got to learn politics in real time.
From the halls of the State House to the floor of the House and Senate, more than 100 high school students from a half-dozen public school systems were eager to make the rounds.
"It was a lot to take in. There's a lot of old stuff up here and I'm learning a lot about it and it's cool," North Caroline High School student Kaden Sanford said.
They're members of what's called the Youth Congress, a group hand-picked by the Maryland Business Roundtable for Education. It's an organization that helps students and parents consider options beyond high school.
"The takeaway or the longer-term benefit that we think is that we are able to connect the students to their sense of state government. I think a lot of them are still learning, state, local, federal and so forth as adults often are," said Brian Dulay, executive director of MBRT.
"It's interesting learning about how things go at the State House in Maryland, the Senate -- we just came from a session of the Senate, so it's a good learning experience," Prince George's County student Keniah Watts said.
A learning experience that's left some of these students with political knowledge and a newfound passion for government in general.
"I know how bills are passed and I can help in the future with Maryland or national-wise, to help people make a bill that's important to everybody," Caroline County student Syncere Turner said.
"Just being here, the aesthetics of the building and the professionalism of everybody, it's an amazing feeling and I might consider going into politics," Prince George's County student Bryce Davis said.
The MBRT is currently serving almost 2,000 students.