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Tuesday, April 19, 2011

My Paging Experience: A Student's Perspective On The 2011 General Assembly In Annapolis

By Katie Rodriguez, James M. Bennett High School

This year I had the privilege to serve as a student page in the Maryland General Assembly. I was assigned to the House of Delegates for my paging duties. The first week, Jan. 17-21, was an introduction week. As pages, we did get to learn a lot, however there was not much action on the floor. We ran many errands for different delegates, but we also got to meet and talk with them. Aside from sitting in on committee hearings and meeting with our delegates, much of our free time was spent together, as pages. We grew very close, through our various outings and explorations of downtown Annapolis, and by Friday it was hard to say goodbye. We had our second week to look forward to, though.

My second week, March 7-11, was a lot busier. There was a lot of action on the floor over some very controversial bills. Seeing people come together to advocate for their side of the bill was a great experience. The debates were never-ending, it seemed; however, we never were bored because we ourselves would get consumed by them.

The paging experience opened my eyes to the world of politics. While I have always aspired to become a lawyer, my time in Annapolis increased my awareness and interest in the political world. I met many people - delegates, senators and other pages - who I will never forget. Overall, I had an amazing experience and would certainly recommend this program to anyone interested in politics, or who wants to learn more about politics.

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