WINONA, MN – Students from several area schools in grades 6 – 12 will participate in the annual Model Legislature at the Tau Center on Winona State University's West Campus. High school students will serve as members of the House of Representatives, State Senate, and Governor’s Office and middle school students will serve as pages. Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie will swear-in the student legislators and deliver the opening address at this year's event on November 20. The event will be held at WSU's Tau Center on the West Campus on Thursday, November 20 and Friday, November 21 from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm both days.
“The model legislature provides students the opportunity to step into the shoes of lawmakers and experience how laws are actually made," said Pelowski, who has taught the "Teaching Social Studies in the Secondary" course for WSU for the past 24 years and has been the advisor to the Model Legislature for 39 years.
In preparation for becoming Social Studies teachers, Winona State University students in Pelowski’s ‘Teaching Social Studies in the Secondary’ will serve as committee administrators, clerks and assist the Governor’s office.
Students researched actual bills that will be heard during the upcoming legislative session during the formation of their bills, which are now posted on the WSU Model Legislature website. They can be viewed at http://bit.ly/117o4W6.
The 2014 Model Legislature is free and parents and members of the public are invited to attend. Participating schools include Winona Senior High School, Winona Middle School, Cotter High School, and Winona State University. If you have any more questions, please contact Rep. Pelowski at (651) 296-8637 or by e-mail at rep.gene.pelowski@house.mn.