Taylor Andreas, of Lehighton has been selected by Shoemaker-Haydt Unit 314, American Legion Auxiliary, Lehighton, to attend Girls State June 17-23 at Shippensburg University in Shippensburg. She is the daughter of Danielle and Nathan Andreas.

Taylor is in cross-country track and the yearbook club. She loves math, sings in the church choir, and enjoys running and skiing. She is a junior at Lehighton Area High School. She plans to continue her education after high school to follow her dreams of becoming a nurse.

The American Legion Keystone Girls State program is a weeklong simulated government immersive learning experience.

America’s future leaders, now high school girls, become ‘citizens’ and are assigned to mock cities where they assume roles on fictional national and federal political parties. They run for and hold offices that mirror their state elected offices.

They will learn about legislative process and parliamentary procedure. They will have a fully interactive house and senate that will write proposed bills and debate those bills. They will also hold collegiate-level mock trials.

This program is designed to teach lifelong lessons in leadership grounded in civility, teamwork, advocacy, consensus building and respect.

As part of the program, two girls will be selected to attend “Ala” Girls Nation as senators for a week in July in Washington D.C.

LaRue Fritz is Shoemaker-Haydt Unit 314 American Legion Auxiliary Girls State chairman.