1. Set up a committee from your county organization to help assure a good event for all involved. Contact county officials to set a date and assist in organizing the day’s events.
2. Invite area schools, teachers and top students in the County to participate in County Youth Government Day.
3. After the date has been set and you know the schools that have agreed to participate, the classroom plans should be exclusively in the hands of the school. Many schools have juniors and seniors participate with the thought that they will soon be eligible voters.
4. It is suggested that teachers get students involved in a class-wide election process. Each participating school selects a full slate of elected county officials: Sheriff, District Attorney, Register of Deeds, County Circuit Judge, Clerk of Courts, Treasurer and County Clerk. Once students decide to become a candidate, have campaigned, and have been duly elected, they would represent the school and the students at the County Youth Government Day. If the school has foreign exchange students, ask them to be present also; not as candidates for an office, but as interested individuals eager to learn about county government.
5. The program agenda may vary with each county. With registration followed by a general assembly, the students should then be allowed to visit with their counterpart to learn the many duties of the office. At noon, there is a luncheon provided by the Post. The sponsoring Posts should share the expense of the lunch, as well as transportation, if any. Allow the students to sit in on a portion of a County Court session or County Board session. Close out the day with another general assembly, which would be an ideal time to hand out student and county officials citations.