United States Senate Youth Program

Dear USSYP community,   We share today that our long-standing Program Director Rayne Guilford has made the decision to retire after the 2025 program year. We are grateful to Rayne for her decades of service and her commitment to excellence in leading this program. She will be deeply missed by all.   As we look forward to the next chapter of the program, we would appreciate your sharing the attached opportunity with your networks, should you know any talented potential candidates who would be interested in assuming the role of Program Director.   We request that candidates please send a resume and a cover letter explaining their interest in the Program Director role and why they would be the optimal candidate to Donna Lagani, Eastern Director at: [email protected] with USSYP APPLICANT as the subject. Thank you for your ongoing support of USSYP!  

The United States Senate Youth Program would like to thank President Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden for an extraordinary event at the White House last week: a private live Watch Party for the State of the Union capped off by personal appearances and congratulations as soon as they returned from Capitol Hill. In a program first, the student delegates were hosted in the East Room with big screens and snacks, and engaged with additional speakers including White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, and director of the Office of Public Engagement and senior advisor to the president Mayor Stephen Benjamin. A night to remember forever for America’s future leaders.

In their final day in Washington, the Senate Youth delegates had the rare opportunity to learn about the depth and breadth of efforts to keep our nation secure from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown, Jr. and Melissa Dalton, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. Both provided advice for success beyond the program and shared about their careers in service. Thank you United States Department of Defense for your long-standing support of the program. 

With a surprise reveal, the delegates were thrilled to discover that they would be watching the State of the Union Address…at the White House! With great enthusiasm, the delegates made their way to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue where they were able to watch the live State of the Union Address from the elegant East Room. They were then treated to an an even greater surprise when they had the chance to meet with both President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden when they returned from the SOTU. We are tremendously grateful to the President and White House staff for making this once-in-a-lifetime event possible! 

On this #internationalwomensday, we take great pride in our 60 female delegates this year and those who have come before them. For 62 years, female Senate Youth delegates have dreamed big dreams and relentlessly pursued them. We also express our admiration for the female Military Mentors, who epitomize the highest forms of public service and sacrifice across the world.

In an opportunity for the delegates to gain a deeper understanding of the breadth and depth of initiatives undertaken by U.S. Department of Justice, the delegates met with Kristen Clarke, U.S. Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division and several of her colleagues on an interactive panel. Thank you for sharing your work and passion with these young leaders.

We want to thank Judy Woodruff, senior correspondent of The PBS Newshour, for sharing her storied career and discussing today’s media landscape with the 20204 Senate Youth delegates. She told them she has put a lot of faith in their generation to create and seek fact-based information.

We had the great pleasure of welcoming back to Washington Week the distinguished #USSYP alumnus, Brian Kamoie (PA-1989). Mr. Kamoie has held leadership positions at the Department of Homeland Security, FEMA and in the White House. He spoke of his experience in public service and asked the young leaders to do three things: 1) Commit to serve; 2) Think big and 3) Take bold and ethical actions. Thank you Brian Kamoie for inspiring the next generation of leaders to follow in your footsteps.

We are deeply grateful to the 76 United States Senators who attended the 62nd Annual United States Senate Youth Senate Reception. The Senators prioritized this event amid their hectic schedules to meet with their state’s delegates in the Kennedy Caucus Room in the Russell Senate Building. The Senators welcomed the students to Washington, learned about their leadership and passions, and shared their own motivations for pursuing public service. We thank the Senators and their staff for investing in the next generation of public servants.

Thank you to NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration Administrator Dr. Richard Spinrad for meeting with the Senate Youth delegates and discussing the role of NOAA in advancing science-based research, policy and practices. For these young leaders, many of whom are passionate about the environment, science, and research, this session illuminated a rewarding path in public service.