This is s first year with a JSA chapter. Beginning our chapter has been a hard but extremely rewarding experience. The founders of our chapter wanted a club where students could discuss politics, debate controversial issues, and provide a forum for students to voice their opinions on the issues most relevant to them.

Our first convention was PNW Fall State and although we only brought four members, they had an excellence experience and came back with energy and excitement. This energy and excitement rubbed off on other students and at Portland Congress we proud to attend with fourteen members. Our preparation paid off as we came back to Issaquah having passed a bill and winning our first Best Speaker Gavel.

The chapter hosts regular meetings every Thursday and the attendance is growing each and every week. Once a month there are Dinner and Debates. The word is getting out around IHS and numbers continue to grow as more and more people come to express their viewpoints and let their opinions be known. HIS JSA currently attract 30 students to each of our meetings and chapter leaders hope that this trend will continue.

Leaders believe that Issaquah High School’s JSA is going somewhere great; they have a goal of bringing at least 30 members to Spring State in April. Fundraisers have been planned and are in the works in an effort to give everyone the chance to attend the convention, regardless of financial circumstance.

It is an unbelievable joy to see students who normally would not get up to debate politics become so interested. IHS JSA has many exciting plans for the future and hopes to demonstrate to more and more that truly “democracy is not a spectator sport.”