Texas Boys State delegate interviews were recently completed over a three-week period by an eight-member veteran committee. Larry Wilhelm, the program committee chairman, said, “We had a very strong group of 29 candidates from Frisco ISD and private high schools this year.” The high school principals, counselors and teachers nominated junior students from each of their respective schools.

Because of COVID-19 and the winter storm of Feb. 15, virtual interviews and evaluations were conducted over an extended three-week period. Twenty high school juniors were ultimately selected to attend the 2021 Texas Boys State virtual program from June 27-July 2, 2021.

American Legion Boys State, an 85-year-old program, is among the most respected and selective educational programs of government instructions for high school students. It is a participatory program where each delegate becomes part of the process of his local, county and state government. Using the highly effective experiential learning process, delegates are exposed to the rights and privileges, duties and responsibilities of a franchised citizen. The training is objective and practical with city, county and state governments operated by the delegates elected to various offices.

Since June 2014 and including the 2021 selected young men, Post 178 has sponsored 141 Texas Boys State delegates. The highly competitive Texas program supports mentoring youth, which is one of the four pillars of The American Legion.