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On Saturday, nearly 1,000 boys from across the state of Missouri made their way to Warrensburg, home of the University of Central Missouri and Missouri Boys State. Upon arrival the 2012 Citizens began their experience by officially registering and having their photo IDs created. |
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Once registered, the citizens returned to their assigned cities to meet their City Counselors and fellow citizens. They soon realized that the week ahead of them may be more than just setting up a government, but brilliant and intelligent future leaders creating a state from the simple citizen and small business to a thriving monster of government and business empires, it sinks in that just maybe, Missouri Boys State is what you make of it. |
 The evening events for Saturday had the boys hit the ground running. A City Meeting with the City Counselors kicked off the evening to orientate the boys with a overview of the week to come.
Following dinner, the citizens assembled at the quadrangle for evening flag ceremony. Evening colors at Boys State is a tradition that has been held each day of every program to honor of the legionnaires and veterans that make the entire program possible, and as respect to our great nation. |
 Following the flag ceremony, the citizens headed into Hendricks Hall to hear a presentation by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster.
In his address, the Attorney General focused on encouraging the citizens to not be afraid to learn and try to be things they had never been, whereas in the real world there are no schools to truly prepare someone for being the Attorney General as he would say, or a Governor.
Koster encouraged the boys that mistakes were allowed, he would follow this with an old saying of how good judgment comes from experience, and experience, come from bad judgment.
Throughout the address he also encouraged the citizens to use one of the greatest tools in this world: a tool, he said, was at their fingers -- not a cell phone or the internet, but a newspaper.
He encouraged the citizens to take the time to read, not just their local newspaper, but a national or world newspaper, in order to know what was occurring in the world around them.
To finish his address he challenged the citizens to take the time to order a subscription to a newspaper such as the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal and spend at least thirty minutes every day reading about our world. |
 Following Koster's remarks, the The American Legion Department of Missouri Commander took the stage.
2011 MBS Governor David Rogers delivered his opening to the remarks with inspiring words of advice, describing the 2012 citizens as “the elite of the elite.” He told them that “your records will be broke, and memories will be forgotten unless you embody the things you learn here. ”
Rogers said the key was to educate themselves to the best of their ability in order to succeed. He then ended with lyrics from the popular song “We Are Young” by Fun, “Tonight, we are young. We’ll set this world on fire, make it burn brighter, than the sun,” instructing the citizens, with their own unique talents, to take the world by storm and to use the skills they learn at Missouri Boys State to do just that.
Following the assembly, the citizens returned to their cities. They separated into their Wards for the purpose of selecting Ward Committeemen and to discuss their political platform.
Then, as a complete city, they met organize their City Committee, choose an Athletic Director and Assistant Athletic Director, a Beverage Commissioner, and to choose the City Reporters for TV, Radio, and Newspaper.
After a whirl-wind day, the citizens headed to bed and fell asleep to prepare for an equally busy Sunday. |
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Focused instruction a highlight of program |
WARRENSBURG • In addition to a core curriculum that all citizens of Boys State will study, focused instruction with professionals in each area of study provide Boys Staters additional insight. Following is a summary of each of the five areas:
CAMPAIGNING AND POLITICAL OPERATIONS
This school teaches the process of getting elected and then examines how to serve once elected. We help citizens develop successful campaign strategies, create positive perceptions, deliver persuasive speeches, and produce persuasive media. Citizens in this area also will administer and analyze the results of public opinion polls on elections and issues significant to Boys State. The course is taught by the principals of a successful, national political consulting firm based in Washington, D.C.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
This area gives citizens a look at the day-today activities of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The school is taught by members of the Patrol, which has had a longtime affiliation with Boys State. Topics covered will include various aspects of crime prevention and the responsibilities of a law enforcement official. Citizens will be trained in arrest and trial procedures, which they will apply when elected or appointed to law enforcement jobs at Boys State. They also will be updated on the latest and most effective methods of police work used by the Highway Patrol.
LAW
Citizens are taught the basics of trial procedure, civil actions, criminal law, legal pleadings and the role of an attorney in general. Law students are required to pass a bar exam prior to practicing law at Boys State. Law School prepares citizens to hold offices which require a qualified attorney, such as Municipal Judge. The instructors of Boys State Law School are practicing attorneys and judges.
LEGISLATIVE
Taught by current and former members of the Missouri General Assembly, including the former governor of Missouri, Bob Holden, the Legislative School helps citizens gain a basic understanding of the workings of the House of Representatives and the State Senate, including how laws are passed. Citizens will also learn about the procedural and practical problems of the legislative process, including parliamentary procedure.
JOURNALISM
The citizens who attend this area serve as staff members of KMBS-TV and KMBS Radio, each of which has daily newscasts complete with commercials and promotional spots, and of MBS Record, which is published daily. The staffs of the newspaper, radio and television are completely responsible for the content of their stories, and may develop editorial positions with respect to candidacies and operations at Boys State. During the focused sessions, citizens discuss the responsibilities of reporters and the basics of covering news events; advertising; producing television broadcasts; and libel and slander. Special emphasis is placed on the role of the media in political campaigns. The counselors for the Media School have extensive experience in media and politics.
DEMOCRACY ACADEMY
This school combines aspects of all the other areas by looking at a real-life scenario from a local community perspective and watching how various governmental agencies would interact with the case. Citizens who attend will learn about how public officials make tough decisions while contemplating their public image (Government Executive/Campaigning), how journalists inform the public about those decisions (Media), how police officers conduct investigations when a crime has allegedly been committed (Law Enforcement), how those investigations lead to court cases in the judicial system (Law), and how citizens can petition lawmakers to change policies to ensure similar mistakes are never made again (Legislative). The Democracy Academy is best suited for citizens who want a general education instead of specialized training in any one area. |
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Did you know...
In addition to almost 1000 Citizen attendees, Missouri Boys State brings over 200 volunteers that give over a week of their time to make this session possible.
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