William Floyd High School students achieved notable success at the 90th annual New York State YMCA Youth and Government Conference in Albany, according to an announcement on Apr. 15. More than 835 students from across the state attended the late March event, which simulates state government operations through executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
The conference saw William Floyd’s delegation secure nine statewide leadership positions and multiple individual awards. Joyce Chen was elected Governor for next year’s conference, while Erin Chen became Lieutenant Governor. Other leadership roles went to Lily Quinn (Comptroller), Matthew Danielsen (Chief Justice), Christopher Schelhas (Public Defender), Gabriel Villacis (Assembly Liberty Speaker), Owen Vaughan (Assembly Freedom Speaker), Steven Lin (Assembly Excelsior Speaker), and Madison Spanarelli (President Pro-Tempore of Senate Freedom).
Mr. Robert Feeney has advised the program since 1985, helping guide generations of students interested in public policy. “The motto of the Youth and Government program is that ‘Democracy must be learned by each generation.’ This program achieves that goal like no other, and provides great hope for the future, especially in our challenging times,” said Mr. Feeney.
Students also earned recognition for debate skills and legislative writing with several receiving Outstanding Debater awards: Steven Lin, Michael Henry-Gordon, Mars Juno Smothergill, and Madison Spanarelli; as well as Outstanding Bill honors for teams led by Lily Quinn, Mia Cartelami, Kamille Thompson; Hajaratu Barrie’s group; and a team including Joyce Chen.
Several participants qualified for national events such as the Conference on National Affairs in North Carolina this summer—Joyce Chen, Erin Chen, Lily Quinn and Gabriel Villacis among them—and others advanced to the National Judicial Conference in Texas. Individual honors included Savannah Latendresse as Outstanding Delegate; Arihanna Smith with a Core Values Servant Leader Award; Jae Kim with a scholarship; Jason Tamay and Natalie Barbecho were recognized for Best Brief Case A.
The William Floyd School District serves more than 9,400 students across ten schools offering education from kindergarten through twelfth grade according to its official website. The district has received recognition for its music program among top communities for music education as well as its business department being named Department of the Year by the Business Teachers Association of New York State according to its official website. Alumni have been recognized for contributions in scholarships, educational leadership and community service according to its official website.
The district emphasizes collaboration among students, parents, educators and staff to support student development intellectually, emotionally and physically within a supportive environment according to its official website.
