Ever since Y-Club came back from their field trips, news about their experience of KYA has been spreading all throughout the hallways of our school.
The Y-club, led by World History teachers Tyler Vessels and Katherine Graybeal, went to the Kentucky Youth Assembly (KYA) Nov. 24-26 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Louisville. About 1200 students from 40 different high schools were at the conference.
The KYA is when students are a part of a mock state government. There are many roles you can fill including but not limited to delegate, bill sponsor, committee chair, and lobbyist. Senior Savannah Singleton, a committee chair, explained her role in KYA.
“I am the person who will make debate fun and encouraging while also maintaining order,” Singleton said. “I’m running the debate, so while I’m responsible for everyone in my chamber and their bills, I’m also responsible to keep the Y-Staff updated on what’s going on in my room.”
This is her fifth time going to KYA. A committee chair has to be a senior. They attend an online training prior to the conference.
“Everyone is there for the same reason you are, so it’s nice to talk to people that have the same mindset as you,” Singleton said. “Being a Committee Chair has shown me how important communication is. This is a crucial skill no matter what future I decide to go into.”
Vessels agrees.
“One of my favorite things about KYA is seeing students begin the conference a little reserved and then seeing them jump in with both feet and really get into everything before it’s over,” Vessels said.
Central Hardin had three groups of bill sponsors. One group included senior Brianna Gwinn, Sydney Manfull and junior Maddex Adams, who sponsored a bill to strengthen security in Kentucky schools.
Sophomores Abigail Pike and Kiara Alford along with freshmen Lia VanZant and Mallory Priddy sponsored a bill to help homeless veterans.
Seniors Emerson McNeilly, Harper Warrell, Jenaya Adams, and Ryah Rodriguez sponsored a bill that helped protect petitioners who file domestic violence orders as well as emergency protection, which received an award for having one of the top ranked bills with their bill orders.
McNeilly, Warrell, Adams, and Rodriguez’s bill was inspired by a tragic shooting in August. This happened near the Hardin County Courthouse where a 37-year-old Erica Riley was going to place an emergency protective order on her boyfriend, accompanied by her mother, 71-year-old Janet Riley. The boyfriend, Christopher Elder, shot both the mother and daughter and later shot himself in a standoff with the police.
Erica Riley’s niece was there at the conference and McNeilly and Warrell shared their thoughts about it.
“It made the bill more real and definitely made me shed so many tears,” Warrell said.
“Erica Riley’s niece really loved our bill idea and it was just good to see that we were actually spreading awareness in our community. It was a good feeling,” McNeilly said.
The bill was started in August and it took about a month to finalize it.
“It was some of the best memories working with them and I think we had a lot of fun and got to know each other better,” McNeilly said.
The next adventure for Y-club members is to begin preparing for the Kentucky United Nations Assembly (KUNA). This will be held during March where our school will represent a country yet to be determined. They will debate and work to find solutions to problems that would benefit numerous countries, and not just the one they are representing.
Y-club is a great way to find your voice and jump into the experience. It helps you learn that you can even make a difference in your country.
“I hope more people can join Y-Club and experience KYA because I think it’s so important that everyone tries to find their voice and try to make an impact in their community,” McNeilly said.
