Many clubs in WOHS help to mold and inspire good character and the Junior Statesmen of America organization is a perfect example. JSA is a national organization that encourages students to partake in civil engagements, debate, and gain an understanding of political and social issues. Anyone is welcome to join the JSA, regardless of whether or not they’ve attended meetings in the past. JSA is run similar to a congress as they have debates on mock legislation and draft their own bills, and then each member expresses their opinions on proposed bills. In addition to this, they discuss politics as well as current events within the news, assessing how they affect our communities and how to act upon global changes.

Every year, JSA attends Winter Congress in Washington D. C.  with other chapters from our mid-Atlantic region, and explores a plethora of sights in D. C. Just this year one of the two bills the WOHS JSA chapter wrote was selected for debate at Winter Congress and even made it through various committees. Members can also attend local regional conferences, such as Spring One-Day that took place at Princeton University back in March.

“As president, my goal has been to instil a strong sense of political awareness among members, allowing them to gain a comfortability with public speaking and a familiarity with the legislative process,” said Austin Bartola, the president of WOHS’ JSA chapter. “With the political climate more dense than ever, it’s extremely important high school students like us learn to engage in productive conversations and form opinions based on facts.” Anyone interested in politics, or in discussing issues affecting our society is encouraged to join and attend meetings every Wednesday after school in Room 1134. You can see Mrs. Brady or Mr. Saul for further details pertaining to Junior Statesmen of America.