Every summer, more than 1,000 high school senior boys from across Texas journey to the Forty Acres for Boys State, a weeklong experiment in self-government. Sponsored by the American Legion, the selective program invites students nominated through their schools and local posts to build a mock state government from the ground up by campaigning for office, drafting legislation and electing leaders ranging from city officials to the governor.

Participants are assigned to mock political parties and organized into cities of about 45 students, with three cities forming a county and six counties making up a district. Throughout the week, they create party platforms and governmental institutions before electing statewide officials and debating legislation in a simulation of Texas government.

For Christian Quintanilla, an aspiring Longhorn from Katy, Texas, one of the most anticipated parts of the week is the opportunity to visit the Texas Capitol and participate in the same chambers where Texas lawmakers debate and vote on legislation.

“I am so excited to be able to sit in … the seats of representatives in Texas,” Quintanilla said. “It’s such an experience to be able to sit in the seat (of) someone who actually affects your daily life.”

While Quintanilla said the program’s reputation and value on college applications initially caught his attention, he said the experience has already offered benefits beyond what he expected.

“I really enjoy being in diverse groups of people, hearing different points of view … even if it isn’t something that I agree with, because it’s always great to have an open mind,” Quintanilla said.

Assistant Director Mark Mayer, who has been involved with Boys State since 1988, said Quintanilla’s experience reflects one of the Boys State’s primary goals.

“Getting to see different parts of Texas … changes people’s attitudes and values and makes them rethink some of their hardline positions,” Mayer said. “The key is to send them home with some sort of feeling of how civil discourse is supposed to work, which is, ‘I may disagree with you, but we can discuss it, and we can end up disagreeing, but we can shake hands and go down the road together.’”

Mayer said the experience also serves as a pathway to Boys Nation, where two delegates are selected to represent Texas in a weeklong mock federal government exercise in Washington, D.C. While only a handful of students advance to Boys Nation, Mayer said the lessons learned at Boys State extend far beyond that opportunity.

“95% of everyone that leaves here will learn one lesson for sure,” Mayer said. “And that is that a vote matters, and that if (you) don’t do anything else in politics in (your) life, (you) need to vote from every level, from (your) local mayoral race to governor up to president.”

For Merlin Janson, a UT government student entering his third year as a Boys State counselor, the program’s impact can be seen in the way participants engage with government firsthand.

“Some of these kids have never even heard about the state Capitol being in Austin, and all of a sudden they’re stepping in, seeing the massive rotunda, seeing all of the history that is in such a condensed place,” Janson said. “They’re actually able to see how much their lives are affected by politics.”

Janson said his own experience as a participant influenced his decision to study government at UT and eventually return as a counselor, where he now helps guide students through the same program that shaped his own future.

“So many young men will come here not knowing what they want to do with life, but be a part of this program for just one week and have their entire life planned out afterwards,” Janson said.