2023 Assembly Wrap Up!
We were back! Back in Springfield and back in the beautiful Illinois Capitol for our 74th Assembly. Over 890 students came to Springfield, debated, presented and met students from all over Illinois.
Scroll down for a list of our Student Leadership Team, Student Award Winners and our Volunteer Service Award Winners!
Student Leadership Team:
Major Officers
Luke Fosdick, Neuqua Valley
Zoe Williams, Metea Valley
Lt. Governor:
Daksh Shandilya, Neuqua Valley
Secretary of State:
Wanrou Sun, Neuqua Valley
Presidents of the Senate:
Aleigha Bunnell, Sesser-Valier
Jaleel Drones-Akins, Kenwood Academy
Ragnav Taneja, Neuqua Valley
Speakers of the House:
Cynthia Jing, Neuqua Valley
Delaney Kirk, Gateway Region Y
April Zhang, Neuqua Valley
Executive Director of Lobbyists:
Jillian Mannisto, Neuqua Valley
COMMITTEE CHAIRS
- Khushi Aggarwal – Lake Park
- Krish Aggarwal – Metea Valley
- Justas Bobrevicius – Westmont
- Musa Bukhari – Waubonsie Valley
- Sam Caputo – Sycamore
- Riya Chintala – Metea Valley
- Emily Chiou – Neuqua Valley
- Nathaniel D’Orazio – Northeast Independent
- Daniel Ghera – Stagg
- Dayton Harper – Mt. Vernon Township
- Aaliyah Hawk – Sesser-Valier
- Veronica Hummert – Gateway Region Y
- Sam Hung – Neuqua Valley
- Alex Jeong – Neuqua Valley
- Brianna Jones – Eisenhower
- Oliver Keicher – Sycamore
- Elizabeth Kleckner – Sycamore
- Kathy Lee – Neuqua Valley
- Thomas McComb – Sycamore
- Kaelyn McGhie – Neuqua Valley
- Violet McIntyre – Richards
- Nate Miller – Sycamore
- Vanessa Orintas – Richards
- Farah Rahman – Waubonsie Valley
- Salimah Scott – Neuqua Valley
- Sanjana Settipalli – Neuqua Valley
- Gracie Shopinski – Woodlawn
- Hannah Utlaut – Sesser-Valier
- Megan You – Gateway Region Y
Devotion Leaders
- Asher Bates, Sesser Valier
- Tyler Boecker, Oswego
- CJ George, Carmel Catholic
- Nick Waldron, Williamsville
Assistant Directors of Lobbyists
- Aditi Amarnath – Neuqua Valley
- Belle Connolly – Carl Sandburg
- Jordon Gully – Gateway Region Y
- SIddharth Jaiganesh – Neuqua Valley
- Claire Nash – Neuqua Valley
- Maya Rounds – Sesser Valier
- Emily Shield – Waubonsie Valley
Clerk of the House
- Parker Johnson – Benton
- Shritan Tummala – Bloomington Normal Y
- Sarah Haque – Neuqua Valley
Secretary of the Senate
- Hunter Boyle – Andrew High School
- Cole Buchanan – Benton
- Vanshika Shetty – Neuqua Valley
Sergeant-at-Arms of the House
- Jakarri Baugh – Eisenhower
- Grace Nelson – Batavia
- Eli Prost – Mt. Vernon
Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate
- Chelsea Boothe – Batavia
- Gunnar England – Waltonville
- Sam Owens – Kenwood Academy
MEDIA CORPS
Editors
- Kendall Eddington – Wheaton Warrenville South
- Luisa Frackiewicz – Lake Park
Social Media Editor
- Madison Powell, Lake Park
Assistant Social Media Editors
- Hannah Faulkner, Lake Park
STUDENT STEERING COMMITTEE
CHAIR: Lt. Governor Daksh Shandilya – Neuqua Valley
VICE CHAIR: Jackson Snodsmith – Mt. Vernon
- Aiste Siupienius – Addison Trail
- Megan Muzzey – Batavia High School
- Norah Thurow – Batavia High School
- Nicole Huffaker – Bradley Bourbonnais Comm.
- Avery Kelly – Carl Sandburg High School
- Hannah Adkins – Frankfort Community
- Veronica Hummert – Gateway Region YMCA
- Krish Aggarwal – Metea Valley High School
- Roshini Ashrit – Metea Valley High School
- Zoe Williams – Metea Valley High School
- Nate Gonzalez – Naperville North/Central
- Luke Fosdick – Neuqua Valley High School
- Sneha Ghosh – Neuqua Valley High School
- Wanrou Sun – Neuqua Valley High School
- Michael Amato – Neuqua Valley High School
- Nathaniel D’Orazio – Northeast Independent
- Thomas Johnson – Oswego High School
- Carson Moore – Oswego High School
- Sallee Collins – Pinckneyville High School
- Vanessa Orintas – Richards High School
- Olivia Tipton – Sesser-Valier High School
- Henry Meinert – Sesser-Valier High School
- Oliver Keichner – Sycamore High School
- Cassandra Chamoun – Sycamore High School
- Tryton Fassett – Waltonville High School
- Musa Bukhari – Waubonsie Valley High School
- Maya Sanny – Waubonsie Valley High School
- Amelia Carnana – Wheaton Warrenville South
- Ethan Timm – Williamsville High School
Student Award Winners:
BEST LEGISLATORS
Blue House Veronica Hummert – Gateway Region Y
Blue Senate Hawkeye Pirtle – Whitney Young
Gray Senate Thomas McComb – Sycamore
Gray House Meiling Sun – Neuqua Valley
Orange Senate Asha Suresh – Neuqua Valley
Orange House Calvin Steger – Neuqua Valley
LOBBYISTS
| Blue
1 Camille Pirtle – Whitney Young 2 Alicia Labriola – Bradley Bourbonnais 3 Jordan Gully – Gateway Region Y |
Gray
1 Layla Sutherland – Lake Park 2 Shreya Patel – Lake Park 3 Aditi Amaranth – Neuqua Valley |
Orange
1 Sid Jaiganesh – Neuqua Valley 2 Uma Bisla – Waubonsie Valley 3 Yogitha Narala – Waubonsie Valley |
| Lobbyists of Distinction:
Ishita Borikar – Waubonsie Valley Claire Nash – Neuqua Valley |
STATE ISSUES FORUM
| Cardinal
1 Eliane Kadima – Neuqua Valley 2 Yashika Singh – Neuqua Valley 3 Jude Hackett – Wheaton North |
Violet
1 Justin Wu – Sycamore 2 Aditi Kaushal – Neuqua Valley 3 Vanshika Shetty – Neuqua Valley |
White-Tailed Deer
1 Chelsea Boothe – Batavia 2 Parker Johnson – Benton 3 Truman Carnine – Mt. Vernon |
JUDICIAL
Head Clerk Bailiff: Siya Malhotra (Neuqua Valley)
Best Written Opinion
- Court 4 (judging People v. Archer)
- Court 12 (judging People v. Wilson)
Thunderdome Teams (winner indicated in bold and *)
People v. Archer
*Defendant/Appellant, Saniya Desai, Jeanelle Zhou (Waubonsie Valley)*
vs.
State/Appellee,Vikrant Avineni, Saatvi Durai (Waubonsie Valley)
People v. Wilson
Defendant/Appellant, Pranay Madey, Nishant Sharat (Metea Valley)
vs.
*State/Appellee, Samhita Subramanian, Maya Sanny (Waubonsie Valley)*
_________________________________________________________
People v. Archer – Defendant/Appellant
Bench Memo
- Darby Elo, Emilee Renc (Naperville Central)
- Akshara Arvind, Rida Majeed, Pravallika Gadupuri (Waubonsie Valley)
- Saniya Desai, Jeanelle Zhou (Waubonsie Valley)
Oral Argument
- Saniya Desai, Jeanelle Zhou (Waubonsie Valley)
- Shaun Jacob, Anika Chandola, Lily Hoffman (Neuqua Valley)
- Darby Elo, Emilee Renc (Naperville Central)
Overall Score
- Darby Elo, Emilee Renc (Naperville Central)
- Saniya Desai, Jeanelle Zhou (Waubonsie Valley)
- Akshara Arvind, Rida Majeed, Pravallika Gadupuri (Waubonsie Valley)
People v. Archer – State/Appellee
Bench Memo
- Allison Fecke, Arian Lagarija, Gavin Sonntag (Wheaton Warrenville South)
- Annika Char, Anjana Viswanathan (Metea Valley)
- Vikrant Avineni, Saatvi Durai (Waubonsie Valley)
Oral Argument
- Vikrant Avineni, Saatvi Durai (Waubonsie Valley)
- Akina Manelkar, Iniya Chandrakumar (Waubonsie Valley)
- Suchita Rao, Sonika Arunodhayam (Metea Valley)
Overall Score
- Vikrant Avineni, Saatvi Durai (Waubonsie Valley)
- Allison Fecke, Arian Lagarija, Gavin Sonntag (Wheaton Warrenville South)
- Akina Manelkar, Iniya Chandrakumar (Waubonsie Valley)
People v. Wilson – Defendant/Appellant
Bench Memo
- Mannsha Assudani, Divya Date (Waubonsie Valley)
- Megan Cereno, Lauren Smilie (Neuqua Valley)
- TIE for third:
Sanjana Kamphampati, Rithika Manchala (Metea Valley)
Mihir Tuteja (Metea Valley)
Oral Argument
- Pranay Madey, Nishant Sharat (Metea Valley)
- Ayesha Ajaz, Peter Eta, Teresa Salazar (Waubonsie Valley)
- Vibha Srikanth, Michael Amato, Katie Min (Neuqua Valley)
Overall Score
- Mannsha Assudani, Divya Date (Waubonsie Valley)
- Megen Cereno, Lauren Smilie (Neuqua Valley)
- Sanjana Kambhampati, Rithika Manchala (Metea Valley)
People v. Wilson – State/Appellee
Bench Memo
- Ethan Montanez, Sophia Daly (Wheaton Warrenville South)
- Achint Saberwal, Zoe Williams (Metea Valley)
- Hamza Ali Sheikh, Humza Asif (Waubonsie Valley)
Oral Argument
- Samhita Subramanian, Maya Sanny (Waubonsie Valley)
- Achint Saberwal, Zoe Williams (Metea Valley)
- Vikram Narasimham, Vallabh Arun (Waubonsie Valley)
Overall Score
- Achint Saberwal, Zoe Williams (Metea Valley)
- Samhita Subramanian, Maya Sanny (Waubonsie Valley)
- Shlokah Sarkar, Arushi Agarwal (Metea Valley)
Passed Bills:
Click HERE for a link to the bills passed and signed by our Governor, Luke Fosdick, this year.
2023 Service Appreciation Awards:
Youth and Government would like to acknowledge the following advisors, board members and program volunteers that give of their time and talents to make Illinois YMCA Youth and Government the best program for civic engagement, leadership, and learning democracy. Thank you so much!
5 Years
Tom Carroll – Board of Directors
Colby Huff – Program Board, Alumnus of Raymond Lincolnwood
James Mattera – Advisor, Carl Sandburg
Jay Mehta – Advisor, Wheaton North
Cheri Peterson – Advisor, Mt. Vernon
Dominique Tucker – Board of Directors, Aluma of Bradley Bourbonnais
Kevin Worland – Program Volunteer
10 Years
Keagan Castro – Head Advisor, Wheaton North
Nadia Gonzalez – Judicial Program Volunteer, Alumna of Waubonsie Valley
Joshua Hall – Head Advisor, Alumnus of West Frankfort
John Noffke – Advisor, Naperville North
Shayma Patel – Judicial Program Volunteer, Judicial Advisor Naperville North/Central
Danielle Reehoff – Advisor, Lake Park
Kathleen Willis – Board of Directors, Alumna of AddisonTrail
15 Years
Phillip Garee – Board of Directors, Alumnus of Neuqua Valley
Pat Usher – Head Advisor, Carl Sandburg
20 Years
Lindsey Clark – Program Volunteer, Former Program/Board of Directors, Alumna of
Wheaton Warrenville South
Kelly Kasper – Head Advisor, Eisenhower, Program Board
Peter Landreth – Head Advisor, Westmont
John Powell – Head Advisor, Lake Park, Program Board
25 Years
Susan Fuhrer – Advisor, Metea Valley, Program Board
30 Years
Craig Garner – Head Advisor, Sesser-Valier, Board of Directors, Alumnus Sesser Valier
Kristin Miller – Advisor, Sycamore, Former Board/Interim CEO, Alumna Mt. Vernon
