Ohio YMCA Youth & Government

The Ohio YMCA Youth & Government convened first in 1952, is a program of the Ohio Alliance of YMCA's. The Ohio YMCA Youth in Government founder, the late C.

Nationally, the YMCA Youth and/in Government Program began in New York State in 1936. In the mid-1930’s, Clement A Duran, the Boy’s Work Secretary of the Albany YMCA, realized the government’s need for more leaders of high moral character and integrity. At the same time he realized the need for high school youth to have a meaningful introduction the democratic process of government since they woul

d soon become full-fledged adult citizens. Duran struck upon the idea of a Model Legislature as a program vehicle for introducing the youth to the actual process and leadership of their state government. He hoped that such a highly meaningful experience might inspire youth to think seriously about government as a career – or at least stimulate the beginning of their active and concerned participation in government as a citizen. Youth In Government is a national government and politics program that promotes civic literacy as well as community service. Ohio’s YMCA Youth in Government program began in 1952 and reflects the idea that “democracy must be learned by each generation” – Ben Franklin. The Ohio YMCA Youth In Government program provides high school and middle school students with a unique opportunity to become acting state legislators, governors, lobbyists, lawyers, committee chairs. The students simulate all phases and positions of the actual state government. These students are challenged with many of the issues our real legislators must face in their elected offices. The Ohio YMCA Youth in Government program was led by Ohio-West Virginia Area YMCA from 1952 until 1970 when the Ohio-West Virginia Area Council ceased to operate program in 1970's as the Ohio-West Virgina Area YMCA and the State YMCA of Michigan became the Great Lakes Region YMCA. In 1972 the Great Lakes Region YMCA appointed an Executive of what was called the West Virginia-Ohio YMCA, operated by the Great Lakes Region to run the YMCA Youth in Government and HI-Y programs throughout the states of West Virginia and Ohio. The Great Lakes Region continued to support these programs into the 1980's. In 1984 a new Ohio-West Virginia YMCA is chartered by the National YMCA. At the end of 2012 the Ohio-West Virginia YMCA made the decision to no longer be a YMCA and chose to return their charter to Y-USA, at this time the Ohio Alliance of YMCA's began operating the Ohio YMCA Youth in Government programs. William O’Neill, the only person in Ohio history to be elected to the highest office in all three branches of Ohio government, having served as speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, governor and chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court worked with YMCA staff to create the Ohio YMCA Youth in Government program. Legislation first proposed in Youth in Government now is seen in more than three hundred actual laws in our states including those that:

Require signal lights at railroad crossings
Reclaim strip mined land
Hold 18 year olds responsible for contracts they sign
Create the white line on the side of the road
Establish “right turn on red”
Established Special Education
Provide for driver’s education
Promote campaign finance reform
Provide for medical malpractice reform. Ratification of the 26th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States granting the vote to 18 year olds.

26/08/2024

Welcome back to school and another great program year at OHYG!

Advisors, mark your calendar for our program year kickoff call on Sept. 16th. Middle School will be at 4:30pm and High School will be at 6:00pm. See you soon!

23/08/2024

It’s that time again. Applications are open for the Youth Advocate Program! This program is a great opportunity for students to learn about being an advocate in their own community, travel to Washington DC, meet legislators on Capitol Hill, and make friends with other Youth Advocates from across the country. Visit ymcayag.org/yap for more information and to apply.

05/07/2024

Congratulations to Sincere Smith from the Cleveland School of Science and Medicine delegation for being awarded the Chandler Scholarship at the 2024 Conference on National Affairs!

01/07/2024

Our delegates are doing amazing on their proposals on the mountain!

Photos from Ohio YMCA Youth & Government's post

26/06/2024

Introducing Ohio’s 2024 C**A delegation! (2/2)

26/06/2024

Introducing Ohio’s 2024 C**A delegation! (1/2)

Ohio State Bar Foundation Awards Over $430,000 Through Its 2024 Spring Grant Cycle » OSBF

21/06/2024

Thank you, Ohio State Bar Foundation, for your continued investment in the youth in Ohio. We are proud to further our partnership in expanding access to teens across Ohio and helping them learn the legal and legislative processes.

Ohio State Bar Foundation Awards Over $430,000 Through Its 2024 Spring Grant Cycle » OSBF News & Events from OSBF

13/06/2024

Thank you, Mission Square, for sponsoring the 2024 YMCA Youth Governors Association and giving JayByx and Savannah the opportunity to prepare for the upcoming year and to connect with their fellow Governors.

11/06/2024

Yesterday, JayByx and Savannah joined their fellow Youth Governors in giving back to the community in DC.

03/06/2024

https://ohioymcayg.org/national-opportunities/njc/

27/05/2024

22/05/2024

DC Alums - sign up to attend this dinner!

https://forms.gle/7GG4cqXTrMbWLhYa9

Reconsider Feminism | Megan Gantner | TEDxYouth@Dayton

15/05/2024

Check out this awesome Ted Talk by OHYG student Megan Gantner from the Carroll High School Delegation. Great job using your voice to inspire others!

Reconsider Feminism | Megan Gantner | TEDxYouth@Dayton Many of the people Megan looked up to the most never saw the damage they were doing with their words and beliefs. In her very informative talk, she shares wh...

The power of dance, and what I learned from a stint as Ohio's attorney general

13/05/2024

Check out this awesome article on our late conference Attorney General and his YG experience!

The power of dance, and what I learned from a stint as Ohio's attorney general May 6, 2024, Owen Pennington I learned a lot at the 2024 Youth and Government conference in Columbus, including about the power of dance. For those who don’t know, CMSD has a program called ...

31/03/2024

Wishing our OHYG family and friends a very happy Easter!

19/03/2024

Make your voice heard!

15/03/2024

We hope our OHYG family and their loved ones are safe after all the bad weather tonight! ❤️

01/03/2024

so many bills hit the floor 🌟

01/03/2024

shoutout to our favorite judges!🧑🏽‍⚖️

01/03/2024

our wonderful gov cab of 2024 🤍

01/03/2024

A huge thank you to Adjutant General Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr, Franklin County Commissioner John O'Grady, and former Rep. Laura Lanese for sharing their wisdom and talent with our YMCA Youth & Government students!

01/03/2024

day one of the ohio youth and government 2024 early assembly complete! we’re so excited for what is to come in the next two days 💌

18/02/2024

Meet our Early Conference Youth Governor, Eric Gitson.

I’m Eric Gitson, your Youth Governor for 2023-24 (Early Conference). This is my third year in the program - I previously served in the Governor’s Cabinet, and as Speaker of the House for Late Conference.

I am so excited to help grow our program and serve our delegates this year. My goal is to include as many students as possible and create an amazing experience for all.

I am passionate about volunteering to help make a difference in my community; I have participated in several environmental initiatives and political campaigns. In my free time, I love traveling, exploring new places, and biking new trails. You are all invited to reach out and talk to me - so we can make our program even better together!

05/01/2024

Happy Birthday to our awesome Director of Strategy!

22/12/2023

A huge thank you to our Middle School Conference volunteers: Ishmael, Olivia, Parker and Seth!! Also a big shout out to Missouri alumnus, Tag Arens, for spending his Sunday helping us get set up. Your dedication and love for the program help to inspire our next generation of leaders.

Claim ownership or report listing

Videos (show all)

Thank you to all our generous Giving Tuesday donors! Your generous contributions help to make the conference a reality ...

Check out Eric Gitson in General Assembly yesterday! He was selected to give a pro intent speech, which is a great honor...

Colette Sarli-Freeman was selected as a con intent speaker for General Assembly!

Our Annual Ohio Statehouse Family Feud!Tune in now!

Contact the organization

Click here to send a message to the organization

Website

http://www.ohioymcayg.org/