Student takes a crack at running local government

Developing leadership skills important to

Paige Richmond

of the Gateway

At the end of this month, John Uehlin will be a near-expert on government. The Gig Harbor High School student has already traveled to Central Washington University in Ellensburg to attend Evergreen Boys State, a leadership and citizenship program that simulates city, county and state government.

Next week, Uehlin will head to Washington, D.C., as one of two young men selected from Washington state as delegates to Boys Nation, where he’ll learn about the federal process.

The opportunity to attend the two events is quite an accomplishment for Uehlin. Boys State — and its female counterpart, Girls State — is a nationwide program run by the American Legion. Every state except Hawaii sends some of its brightest students to the annual convention, and each state then selects only two delegates for Boys Nation.

Boys State alumni have later become big movers and shakers: Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, basketball player Michael Jordan and state Sen. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, were attendees.

Only 16 students from the Peninsula School District were sent to Girls and Boys State this year.

“They learn civics they wouldn’t usually get in school,” said Michael McNichols, Evergreen Boys State Chairman for the Gig Harbor American Legion post. “They learn about civics by doing it themselves.”

But it’s also unusual that Uehlin would be attending. While he’s in the right grade level — delegates must have completed their junior year of high school — Uehlin is only 16, a year younger than both his fellow Boys Staters and classmates.

Uehlin skipped kindergarten, entering first grade when he was 5, and since then, he’s remained a motivated student. At GHHS, he’s been president of the Drama Club and a member of the speech and debate team; outside of school, he’s an Eagle Scout. His mother, Melanie, said participating in Boys State and being selected for Boys Nation were fitting activities for Uehlin’s personality.

“He’s the oldest of three kids who were close in age,” Melanie Uehlin said. ”And that just carried into the rest of his life.”

Uehlin put his leadership skills to the test at Boys State. More than 300 students attended the convention, and they were divided into about 15 “cities” of 20 “citizens” each. Uehlin ran for and was elected mayor of his city before he faced similar problems that real city governments deal with every day, including reducing crime and restoring an abandoned community pool.

Those problem-solving exercises taught him the importance of cooperating and listening to others.

“I learned that, if you want to get something, you have to go out and work with people,” Uehlin said. “A big part of government should be getting to know people and what they want.”

All of Uehlin’s experiences — leading his drama club, getting good grades and participating in Boys Nation — are steps toward his greatest goal: attending the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Both of his parents attended, and he feels the combined four years of college and four years of mandatory military experience will allow him to grow as a leader. He has already set up interviews and begun working on his application for the school this summer.

Uehlin thinks Air Force service will help him find work as an aeronautical engineer at Boeing someday — “I just really like math,” he said — but he has not ruled out working in city government, either.

Despite the fact that his school and extracurricular activities keep him constantly busy, Uehlin emphasizes that he takes on these activities simply because they make him happy.

“I try to focus on enjoying myself,” he said. “I know I should do what I want to do now, because when I go to the academy, I’ll be very busy.”

His father Cliff agrees, adding that everything that Uehlin does — even deciding to apply to the Air Force Academy — was his own idea.

“John has resisted filling the squares,” Cliff Uehlin said. “He does what he wants to do.”

Boys and Girls State representatives

Sixteen juniors from the Peninsula School District participated in Evergreen Boys and Girls State earlier this month.

From Gig Harbor High School, John Uehlin, Daniel Cobey, Garrett McKinney, Kyle McNichols, Roby Paige, Debra Anderson and Emily Haworth were selected for the weeklong leadership camp.

From Peninsula High School, Lucas Jonas, Karissa Wilkinson, Katelyn Ward, Brittany Milbourn, Shelby Cook, Hannah Fisher and Ariel Wood were selected.

Incoming high school juniors who are interested in next year’s program should contact their high school counselor. Applications will be accepted February through March 2009.

Reach Reporter and Columnist Paige Richmond at 253-853-9243 or by e-mail at paige.richmond@gateline.com.