With more delegates than in years past, Youth and Government is heading down to Ducanville to participate in the annual district competition Saturday.

“Every year the District competition is really important, as it’s often the first debate session for our newer delegates,” Co-Parliamentarian Sanjana Dandu said. “This year we have almost double the amount of delegates we had last year which is going to be really nice to see such a strong turnout from Liberty.”

Meetings for the 2019-2020 school year started in September but officers have been preparing for much longer. 

“It’s been a long process to prepare for districts, probably since the end of last year even,” Dandu said. “This year’s officers got advice from our officer team last year, and we’ve been putting it to use to teach our new delegates. So there’s definitely more to prepare than most of the delegates ever see.”

For second year delegate Aryan Samal, the competition is a welcomed opportunity to practice debating. 

“I’m really excited to spend the day debating bills with my friends, especially since we’ve been preparing for a few months now,” Samal said. “Debating is a favorite hobby of mine and I’m definitely really passionate about it.”

Although delegates will be competing for awards, club secretary Shivani Kosuri hopes they will gain a bigger experience that goes further than a certificate. 

“I want the new delegates to have a great time in meeting new people, being more aware of the current events and issues that are brought up in the committee rooms, and learning new information to broaden their opinions and perspectives,” Kosuri said. “I really hope beyond it all, they have a really fun time and hope to continue it for the rest of high school.”