From Manchester to D.C.
South senior selected to travel to Washington to experience politics first-hand
Senior Anushka Rawat poses with a certificate of recognition given to her by the Parkway district for her selection to the Youth Senate program.
She’s 1 out of 100.
Senior Anushka Rawat, has been selected to participate in the U.S. Senate Youth Program. Rawat is one of 100 students from across the country to be selected for this program in which she will get to attend meetings with the President and Vice President of the United States as well as U.S. senators.
Rawat is an active participant in many activities at Parkway South as well.
“I swim, play lacrosse, and do both debate and mock trials at South,” said Rawat.
Even with all of these activities and her Advanced Placement classes, Rawat wasn’t stirred by the somewhat lengthy application process for the Senate Youth Program. She said she heard about the program a few years ago from a friend who had been selected and knew it was something she would be interested in doing when she became a junior or senior.
However, the application process is not exactly simple.
“I applied by writing three 250-word essays and one 2000-word essay. I also had to submit test scores, grades, a letter of endorsement from Pappas-Muyco, and my extracurricular activities. After this application, I had a finalist interview in Jefferson City with a couple of members of the Missouri Department of Education,” she said.
Although it turned out to be worth it as Rawat stood out over many other applicants and was selected to go to Washington D.C. with the program on March 4-11. Here she will be able to attend meetings and briefings with many government officials including a Supreme Court Justice, cabinet members, and as previously stated, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I am most excited to hear from Kamala Harris and other government officials,” Rawat said about her upcoming trip to D.C.
It is certainly exciting to see a South student in such an engaging program, but the trip to D.C. is not the only exciting thing the program offers Rawat.
For attending and getting into the U.S. Youth Senate Program Rawat will receive a $10,000 scholarship toward the college of her choice. She has applied to several schools of choice, including Harvard, and is still awaiting some decisions. She has also gotten into the Mizzou Honors College on a full-ride scholarship.
