WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker today encouraged qualified Mississippi high school students to take note of an Oct. 1 selection deadline for the U.S. Senate Youth Program (USSYP).

The process is underway to nominate and select two Mississippi high school students to take part in the 49th annual USSYP, a program established by the Senate in 1962 to expose select student leaders to the federal government and the U.S. Senate. 

Junior and senior high school students involved in student government at public or private schools are eligible for the week-long program slated for March 5-12, 2011.  The selection process is based, in part, on academic, leadership and public service abilities.

“The U.S. Senate Youth Program offers students a unique opportunity to learn more about government and public service.  Mississippi has sent some exceptional students to take part in this intensive program, and I look forward to our state continuing that tradition,” said Cochran, who with Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa.) was co-chairman of the 2010 USSYP Advisory Committee.

“This program provides high school students the opportunity to see firsthand how the U.S. Senate and federal government functions,” said Wicker.  “I encourage interested students to apply for this exceptional learning experience.”

The Mississippi delegates will receive a trip to Washington, where they will join delegates from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity.  The week-long USSYP program includes meetings with the President, a Supreme Court Justice, U.S. Senators, cabinet secretaries and other policy makers.

Each recipient also receives a $5,000 undergraduate scholarship from the Hearst Foundation which sponsors and fully funds the USSYP.

The nomination deadline for Mississippi delegates is October 1.  Interested students may visit www.ussenateyouth.org to access a 2011 USSYP brochure outlining the rules and selection process information.

Mississippi’s state-level USSYP selection administrator is:

Dr. Tony Webster
Director, Scholastic Development Office
Mississippi Department of Education
359 North West Street, Suite 101
Jackson, Mississippi  39201
(601) 359-4305
twebster@mde.k12.ms.us
www.mde.k12.ms.us

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